Stay Silent

Hiro hated dressing up. He hardly ever did, because he hardly ever had to. He was ranked highly enough in his workplace that no one had ever told him that he should try wearing a dress shirt and pair of actual pants sometime. He was most comfortable in his jeans and cool shirts and hoodies, and so that was what he wore every day.

But, he couldn’t wear them right now. Not to his brother’s big event.

His brother’s big event that Hiro was already late to.

But there wasn’t really an awful lot he could do about that, being packed into a tram full of commuters, like a tin of sardines. He didn’t even have room to pull out his phone and tell his brother that he was still coming, that he was on his way. Not that it would’ve been very helpful; his brother was probably already on stage by now.

He was almost flat against a window, and he glowered at his reflection in the glass. He didn’t look great. He’d made an effort, but people who didn’t know him wouldn’t believe that, going off looks alone. He hoped that there would be others like him there who weren’t too dressed up. He’d been told the event was as close to black tie as an SFIT event could get, but that didn’t stop Hiro from trying to pass off black jeans as dress pants. He was wearing a white dress shirt with a collar that was still so stiff and itchy at his throat, even as he ditched the tie and undid the top buttons a little. He didn’t have a proper jacket, so instead he’d donned a navy blue blazer that didn’t fit him quite right anymore. He wished he had some gel or something on him; his hair was sticking out every which way like he’d just gotten out of bed. He tried to inconspicuously lick his hand and pat it down, but it never stayed. Also, gross.

The tram was a lot slower than even Hiro had thought possible. It rolled with the weight of over forty business men and women, students and pensioners, and Hiro swore that pedestrians in the street were moving faster than they were. It was his own fault, he knew. He should’ve left work earlier. He shouldn’t have expected that he could get halfway across town in under twenty minutes during the evening rush hour.

And then the tram broke down. Unbelievable. Passengers chorused with frustrated cries and expletives, but Hiro didn’t waste a second of his time; he just shouldered his backpack, pushed his way to the exit, jumped off the tram, and broke straight into a run down the street. Dodging around pedestrians on the crowded sidewalks was like trying to play a real-life game of bullet hell.

He passed a clock and – God, he was so late. He’d probably missed half the speeches by now. He hated to imagine that his brother might think he wasn’t there for him. That he wasn’t coming at all.

He had to hurry.

Finally the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology came into view. It looked just as shiny and astoundingly huge as it had, something like seven or eight years ago now. It had been so long. He raced across the lawn, ran inside, mounted up several flights of stairs, and burst into the room where the event was being held.

Several well-dressed people nearby turned to stare at him, and stare at the state of him. Hiro did his best to cover his mouth and catch his breath because it was so quiet in the large auditorium, save for the echo of whoever was mid-speech up on stage. The place had been done up a lot for events such as these; it was all smoothly modern and white lights and ergonomic designs. If the theme had to be described in just one word, Hiro thought it might be future. Or perhaps spacestation.

But, of course, the real theme of this evening was robots.

Because robots are awesome.

Hiro meekly pushed through the crowd of standing scientists and engineers, murmuring apologies to anyone he bumped too hard into, just trying to get to the front. He was still so short after all these years – no, he decided, everyone was just too damn tall – and he still had to stretch up his neck and stand on his toes just to see who was on the stage.

His brother was there. He sat on a chair in the back, with several others who he’d worked alongside, and there was a little stoked smile on his face. Just looking at him made Hiro smile too.

There was no way he could get Tadashi’s attention without making an ass out of himself, so Hiro elected not to. He grabbed some fancy snacks – or maybe he should’ve called them hors d'oeuvres – from a passing waiter’s tray, and he grabbed a glass of white wine from another. He ate and drank as he listened to the speaker go on and on about all the good work Tadashi and his team had done over the years, and how many lives the Baymax series had improved, and how many more they were going to improve once they’d manufactured and stocked more hospitals and rest homes with them.

There was a Baymax up on stage, standing in the foreground and blinking periodically. It looked a lot different to the last one Hiro had seen, many years ago now. It looked good. It looked proficient, capable. Friendly. Every now and again he could see his brother’s gaze flicker over to it, and his little smile almost became bittersweet.

Hiro had wanted to watch them demonstrate all of the amazing features Baymax had, and all of the amazing medical procedures he was programmed with, but Hiro supposed they’d already done all that fun stuff. He was already listening to the last speech; when it was over, another speaker stood up to announce a good night and issued a thanks for the overwhelming support. Hiro applauded, though not nearly as enthusiastically as some other people around him.

Hiro guessed it didn’t matter. He could always just ask his brother to shown him a Baymax later. But he was a little put out that he’d missed so much of the presentation, and especially his brother’s speech. Hiro could see from the way Tadashi clapped and hugged his team and discreetly wiped at his eyes that it had all meant so much to him.

Hiro watched and waited for his brother to leave the stage, but he was barely able to move – always getting stopped to shake hands or have a photo or answer a question. From the way people reacted to his presence… If Hiro didn’t know any better, he’d think his brother was a local celebrity. Hiro wanted so much to just get up there, and tell his brother what a huge dork he was, and embarrass him in front of his little fanbase, but Tadashi was already back at Baymax’s side as people started to point and ask about the robot’s design.

Hiro groaned. He looked around. The crowd was starting to dissipate – people congregating into little groups. Hiro didn’t recognise anyone. He couldn’t even find any of Tadashi’s old friends, who he still talked to occasionally. So he wandered upstairs, where it was quieter, and found a nice vinyl couch to kill time on for a while.

Upstairs, he texted his brother, smirking. Once you’ve finished show and tell.

He hadn’t had to wait very long. Not ten minutes after he’d sent that message, Hiro cried out in alarm as two arms suddenly wrapped around his shoulders, gripping him tightly, crushing him, strangling him. It was either his brother or a murderer – one of the two. But he could probably take a good guess as to which one it was.

“Hey nerd.”

“Hey knucklehead.”

Hiro pushed him off, and Tadashi jumped over the back of the couch to sit next to his brother. Hiro regarded him, an eyebrow raised, and he just laughed. His brother looked so funny: he was panting hard and his eyes were wide and his cheeks were pink with excitement. Hiro couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen his brother look so happy.

“You made it!” Tadashi gasped, clapping his younger brother on the shoulder. “I didn’t know if you were coming or not, what with your work and–“

“Yeah, I got here a bit late.”

“Really, how late?”

“Like…” Hiro peered over at his brother’s watch and felt a jolt of guilt go through him. He coughed, trying to make light of it. “Just… fif-forty minutes. Give or take.”

“Give or take?”

Tadashi threw his head back and laughed, still high off the thrill of success, and Hiro frowned at him, annoyed. “I’ve been bu-sy, OK? Sheesh. Anyway, I’m sorry I missed your speech – I’m sure someone out there got it all on camera for me. I’d hate to miss you making a fool out of yourself in front of so many people. I sure hope there was at least one other person out there who laughed at all of your lame, forced jokes.”

Tadashi leaned back, grinning casual. “Well, even if they were lame, people still laughed. They laugh at all my jokes now. Don’t know if you noticed, but I’m kind of a big deal.”

“Yeah right,” Hiro murmured, smiling as he elbowed his brother right in his side. “You might be a big shot engineer, but you’re still my stupid big brother.”

It was quiet for a moment as Tadashi put a hand on Hiro’s head and ruined any and all of the work that had gone into making his messy hair seemly. “I’ve missed you,” Tadashi said softly, coming down from his high a little. He looked so sober, so sincere. “I don’t care if you missed my speech. I’m just glad to see you. I feel like I don’t get to do that often.”

Hiro tried not to look as affected by the tender moment as Tadashi did. “I haven’t eaten yet. We could get some dinner.”

“Yeah?”

“If you’re not too busy,” Hiro said, gesturing over the railing, where people were still huddled in groups downstairs, still flooding rowdily out into the foyer. “I can wait, if you need to go and… I don’t know. Have more roses thrown at your feet or something.”

Tadashi scoffed and he brought out his phone, sending off a quick message. “They’ll understand,” he murmured, standing up and putting his phone away again. He turned to smile at his younger brother. “They can cover me. So, what do you feel like? Pizza?”

“Already had that like three times this week,” Hiro said offhandedly as he started to lead the way back downstairs and out of the Institute.

“Christ, Hiro, you’re twenty-six. You can’t keep eating like a teenager all your life.”

“True. How about burgers?” he offered, laughing when Tadashi groaned.

-------

It didn’t take them very long to find a place. They settled for a posh European restaurant just down the street from the Institute, and Hiro agreed to go on the condition that Tadashi pay for the meal. Since he was clearly rolling around in a lot of cash and publicity at the moment.

“Well,” Tadashi said, taking a seat at a table for two by the window. “It would be a shame to wear such nice clothes and waste them on the likes of a burger joint, wouldn’t it?”

“You’re dressed nice,” Hiro corrected him, pouring himself a glass of water. “I changed my shirt and threw on this blazer before I left the labs. I’m still wearing jeans and sneakers.”

Tadashi wore a face like he really hoped his brother was joking, but he still checked under the table and it was true. He poured himself his own glass of water, shaking his head and murmuring disapprovingly. “Maybe I should take you out for a suit fitting,” he said. “See if we can find you something nice.”

“Nah. Can’t see how I would need a suit.”

“You never know, Hiro,” Tadashi insisted. “What if tomorrow I died and you didn’t have a nice suit to wear to my funeral?”

Hiro almost choked on his drink. “Bro,” he spluttered, laughing, “I would think that I’d have more things to worry about than clothes if that happened.”

“It was just an example.”

A waitress came by their table then and took their orders, and it didn’t take Tadashi very long to work out that Hiro was taking advantage of his free meal. He was picking out some of the most expensive items on the menu, drinks included. He picked out a steak, got almost all the sides, and a wine that was far too good to be wasted on him. By the time the waitress had left, Tadashi was giving his brother a disappointed glare.

“What?” Hiro took a sip of water innocently. “I’m really hungry.”

Tadashi just shook his head and tried to enjoy the time he had with his brother. His obnoxious little brother.

“So, how’s your work going?”

Hiro nodded, “It’s good. They’re giving me more time to work on my own projects now, so that’s really cool of them. Been building a lot of neat stuff, with a lot of amazing people like me… Also,” he leaned in and lowered his voice, “I may or may not have started a bot fighting ring in the basement.”

Tadashi raised an eyebrow at him. He didn’t seem surprised. “Working hard, huh.”

“Hey – Just because I’m not literally saving lives, doesn’t mean that I’m not contributing. Wow. Get off your high horse, bro,” Hiro joked.

“I’m not on a high horse, Hiro,” he sighed. He suddenly snapped to attention, like he’d just remembered something important. “Tell me, how are things with you and Suki?”

Hiro struck a confused expression. “Suki?”

“…Wasn’t that her name? The girl you’re dating.”

“Oh. Saki.” Hiro rubbed at the back of his neck, suddenly embarrassed, and he looked off to the side. “Uh, things didn’t work out, I guess...”

“Seriously?” Hiro looked into his brother’s face and was surprised to find that he actually looked quite… downhearted. “But you both seemed so happy together.”

Hiro shrugged. He prodded at his cutlery absently. “We were only dating for a couple of months, so…”

Tadashi just wouldn’t let it go. “But I thought you really liked her.”

“Yeah, she was OK.”

Even Hiro had thought that his tone just then was a little harshly dismissive. It had shocked his brother into a few seconds of absolute silence anyway. Hiro took a slow drink from his glass, wishing that the food would get here already, because he didn’t want to be having this conversation. He knew what his brother was thinking; he could see it as clear as day in his concerned eyes. Tadashi was worried that his little brother couldn’t connect with anyone. That he didn’t want to get too close to anyone.

He was worried that Hiro was damaged goods.

“Every time I see you now, you’ve just gotten out of a different relationship,” Tadashi exclaimed quietly. “I’m just… It’s a little worrying.”

“Well, not everyone finds their soul mate first time around, Tadashi,” Hiro said, a little gritted. He tried to cool off, reclining back in his chair. They were supposed to be having a good time. “Besides, I’m already in another relationship. I’ve been going out with Morgan for two weeks now.”

That made his brother perk up again. “Morgan, huh? Is she cute?”

“Morgan’s a guy,” Hiro corrected, “And yeah, he’s pretty cute. We work in the same building, so we get lunch together all the time. He has a ridiculous manga collection. Like, old school manga. Like, everyone-changes-their-clothes-and-suddenly-I-can’t-tell-who-anyone-is-anymore manga.”

Tadashi blinked at him. “You’re dating a guy?”

“Huh? Yeah. Morgan.”

“You’re…” Tadashi squinted at him uncertainly. “You’re… gay? Now?”

“What? No, I’m bisexual.”

Tadashi widened his eyes like this was news to him, and Hiro tried to roll his own into the back of his head. This was precisely why he never bothered to tell people half the time.

“Since when?”

“Since I was like… I don’t know. Seventeen, eighteen? I could’ve sworn I’d told you ages ago now.”

“Well, you didn’t,” Tadashi cried, sounding way too astounded than the situation really called for him to be. “I would’ve remembered you telling mesomething like that.”

“Whatever,” Hiro mumbled, leaning over the back of his chair to stare at the bar, and the waitresses walking plates to and from the kitchen. “Where the hell is our meal?”

Their drinks arrived, and then the food arrived, and Hiro struggled to eat the gigantic portions that had been laid out before him. He’d ordered so much food that the waitress could barely fit it all onto their small round table.

“Don’t worry,” Hiro said, grinning at just how annoyed with him Tadashi looked. He’d finished eating, setting down his cutlery and leaving just under half of his meal completely untouched. “I’ll get this all to go. It can be my breakfast tomorrow. You feelin’ dessert?”

His brother just stared at him. “Really, Hiro? Really?”

“Everyone has a second stomach for dessert, bro.”

“Unbelievable,” Tadashi muttered.

Hiro’s phoned buzzed in his pocket then, and he pulled it out to skim the email he’d just been sent. It was about that meeting again. Just extra details that Hiro figured he’d take a better look at closer to the date. He murmured a stiff ‘oh’ and put his phone away again.

“Who was that?” Tadashi asked. He hadn’t ordered any dessert, but he never resisted a coffee when it was offered to him. “Morgan? Work?”

“No. It’s… Eh.”

“Hm?”

Hiro’s mouth twisted up. He picked at his fingernails apprehensively as he tried to think of what to say. He hadn’t really been planning on sharing this part of his life with his brother, at least not yet. Not until he was a bit more involved and a bit more confident in what he was doing.

But he supposed it was as good an opportunity as any.

He cleared his throat. “So… You know how I still keep in touch with my therapist? Johan?” Actually, it occurred to Hiro that Tadashi might not have even known that much, but his brother still nodded, still with him. “Well, he gets contacted by research psychologists and a lot of other professionals who… want to collect data, or talk to rape victims. And, uh… since… there’s not really that many male victims who get help,” – Hiro laughed, to try to lighten the mood, but it just sounded forced and hollow – “he always asks me if I’d be willing to help out, and… A lot of the time I say… sure. Why not. I’ve done surveys and anonymous interviews and stuff like that before, so… Some…” Hiro couldn’t remember the name of it. He just started throwing words out. “Rape crisis, rape… prevention, education organisation – something like that – is putting together these seminars? To teach kids about respect and safe sex and all–“

“Kids?” Tadashi exclaimed. His face was aghast, his mouth hanging open. “You’re going to talk to children about…” His gaze flew over the nearby occupied tables before he leaned in and whispered the word, “rape?”

Hiro stared at him in silence for a couple of seconds. He was just a little blown away by his brother’s immaturity sometimes.

“Well, not kids. Like, high school students. Teenagers who are already having sex and need… I think they said it was rape sensitivity training? Or something? Sooo… yeah.” Hiro shrugged, staring at his brother, waiting for his response. “That was… just an email to remind me about the meet-up. I thought I might… join their organisation. Help out.”

“Wow… Hiro, that’s…”

His brother couldn’t quite seem to find the words. There was something shining in Tadashi’s eyes that made Hiro think he was just barely coping with the subject matter. But Hiro could see that he was still trying, and he admired that.

Tadashi still smiled, even though it was a little clenched. “That’s, uh… That’s really great, Hiro. That’s good.”

“You think?”

“Yep.” Tadashi nodded, and he just kept nodding. “That sounds great.”

Hiro smiled at him, and he couldn’t help but be a little bit condescending. “It’s OK, Tadashi,” he said, patting his brother’s hand, which was now clamped too hard around the handle of his cup. “I don’t just build robots to rip the heads off lesser robots. I can help people in my own way too, you know.”

Hiro sighed and leaned back and looked out the window into the bustling street. He wasn’t expecting his brother to be much of a conversationalist so soon after all that.

But, surprisingly, Tadashi started to speak.

“I was thinking about maybe… seeing if we could make Baymax… accessible to rape victims. Somehow.”

“Yeah?” Hiro turned back to him again, his face lighting up with interest. He was getting so many new ideas so quickly. He was bouncing his leg. “That would be cool. What, like he could be equipped to carry out DNA tests? Not as proficient as a forensic examiner, but it would be a hell of a lot less invasive to know that he was just a robot, right?”

“Well… Like I said.” Tadashi laughed, slow and awkward. “I’m still thinking about it…”

“Right, right.” Hiro grinned cockily. “Maybe I could join your elite team of super engineers. Give you guys some pointers.”

Tadashi reached over and bopped him lightly on the head. “Why don’t you just invent your own Baymax, hm?”

“Maybe I will. It’ll be a million times better than your nurse robot. I’ll give mine sweet karate moves, and put a rocket in his arm. Oh – and he’ll fly.”

Tadashi laughed, like he thought his younger brother was just being silly now.

-------

It was about eight o’clock by the time they left the restaurant, after Tadashi received what had sounded to Hiro like an urgent call to get back to the Institute as soon as he could. So Tadashi paid for the meal, Hiro collected his small bag of still-warm leftovers, and they both went back out onto the street, starting the small walk back to the Institute.

“So what’s the problem?” Hiro asked, running a little just to keep up with his brother’s long, quick strides. “Fire? Rogue robots?”

Tadashi shook his head grimly, eyes always looking ahead now. “Protestors.”

“Protestors?” Hiro wondered if he’d heard that right. But Tadashi didn’t correct him. “So, what are they protesting?”

Tadashi sighed, like he didn’t have the time to explain all of this right now, but he still did. “They’re against robots, Hiro. They don’t want the Baymax series in our hospitals and retirement villages and clinics, or anywhere else.”

“Wait, what? Why?” It didn’t make sense to Hiro. He was walking backwards now and he would’ve almost tripped on the curb if his brother hadn’t grabbed him by the shirt and turned him around again. Tadashi steadied him, growling “careful” under his breath, but Hiro was still so confused to really notice. “But… I thought these robots were helping people. Why would anyone–“

“Because these robots are taking jobs.”

Hiro didn’t know whether to laugh or not. “Are… Are these people serious? Last I heard we needed more nurses, and more people to take care of the elderly.”

“Yeah, well…” Tadashi sighed, shaking his head again. “Some people think it’s a slippery slope. Some people think robots are going to do a lot of damage in the future.”

Hiro couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “So… Some people watched too many apocalypse films, and now they’re convinced that it’s only a matter of time before the robots turn against us and enslave humanity? That’s… ridiculous! How do people even get to be that stupid?”

“Easy, Hiro,” Tadashi warned, “Not everyone gets to be an engineer like us, you know.”

“Well yeah, but…”

They could see the Institute now, and they could see the small – well it was bigger than Hiro had imagined it would be – crowd outside the front entrance, waving around picket signs and harassing anyone who walked in or out of the doors. They were small, but they were menacing.

Hiro had drifted towards the front entrance, because that’s where he thought they were headed, and he was amused to see what kinds of stupid technophobic nonsense these protestors were spouting. But Tadashi grabbed his arm and veered him off to the side of the Institute.

“We’re going around,” Tadashi declared, and then he stopped. He let his brother go. He seemed to be thinking. “Actually… You should probably just go home. I might have a lot to deal with when I get back in there.”

“But I wanted to see a Baymax.”

“Another time, buddy. There might not be one in there anymore.”

Hiro stared at his older brother, confused and alarmed. “What… Do people break in and attack him or something?”

Tadashi groaned. He was wary of the time, always looking between his brother, his watch, and the protestors. But he seemed reluctant to leave just yet. “It’s been known to happen once or twice, to the operational ones. We’re trying to make it illegal to assault them.”

“Isn’t that already illegal?”

“More illegal, I mean.”

There was a loud, blunt sound like chipped glass coming from the huddle of protestors, drawing Hiro’s attention away from his brother. His eyes bugged. He couldn’t see what they were breaking, but they were definitely breaking something.

“You’d better give those robots some armour, bro. I think they’re going to need it.”

Tadashi’s phone went off again and Hiro was suddenly swept up into a tight hug. “It was good to see you, Hiro,” Tadashi said, as calm as he could. “I gotta go, but I’ll call you later, OK?”

Tadashi pulled back, smiling nervous, and he turned to leave. But Hiro caught his arm before he could.

“Tadashi,” he cried, looking deep into his brother’s fearful eyes, “Look, I… Don’t let a few crazies get you down, OK? What you’re doing is great. I’m really proud of you. Mom and dad would be really proud of you.”

It had felt like the right thing to say. Hiro let his brother go and Tadashi started sprinting across the green, to the side entrance of the Institute. Hiro could’ve sworn he’d seen an overwhelmed appreciation enter his brother’s face, right as he mentioned their parents.

As much as Hiro really wanted to, he decided against engaging the protestors; he just left the SFIT premises, figuring some cops would show up soon if things got any more out of hand. People actually cared about SFIT. It was worth a lot of money. If their windows got shattered, then better ones would replace them the very next day.

Hiro stared at the protestors in the distance. He stopped only to flip them off before carrying on his way back home.