"You can't leave me here, Dashi."
Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Tadashi knew that some random man in the diner wasn't worth risking anything for. He should've just gone home early while he had the chance. He should've made sure that Hiro got home safely, that he wasn't home alone...
His fears were confirmed when he stepped through the door, meeting the silence of the house.
It was six. Six in the evening. That meant that his mom had to be home from her job by now. Normally, when Mom was home from her job, her boyfriend was over. And they usually made noise.
But there was nothing today.
Tadashi shut the door as quietly as he could, scanning his options in his mind. He could call out for Hiro, but what if Mom was around? What if she heard him before Hiro did?
Before he could do anything, Hiro's face popped out from the door to their room. Most of his cheek was covered with a red blotch. He was doing that stupid thing where he tried not to cry, even though there were obvious tears in his eyes.
"You're back," his little brother whispered.
God, why was he whispering?
Fear faded from Tadashi's stomach. All that was left was rage.
"Mom?" Tadashi shouted, tossing his bag to the side.
Hiro's eyes widened. "Tadashi, no -"
"Mom, where the hell are you?" Tadashi could feel his throat burning.
How dare she. The unspoken deal had always been that they'd never touch Hiro. Just Tadashi. He wasn't sure if it had been her or her stupid boyfriend, but he was going to handle it.
"Dashi, don't." Hiro's hand locked in Tadashi's sweater. "I-it was my fault. I left my bots laying around and-"
Tadashi bit his lip to keep himself from screaming. "Otouto, it isn't ever your fault. Don't say that, alright?"
Hiro didn't answer. He was too busy staring at something behind Tadashi. "Mom-"
"What the fuck is going on here?"
Tadashi felt his breath hitch in his throat, and instantly hated himself for it. He wasn't the one allowed to be scared here. He couldn't let her see that she had an effect on him. Not with Hiro around.
"Dashi came home from work," Hiro said, his voice barely a whisper. "He was just gonna come to our room."
He tugged on Tadashi's sleeve again. Pleading.
"She wasn't talking to you," a voice rumbled. Tadashi forced himself to turn around.
Their mom stood in front of them, teeth gritted and arms folded. Behind her, her boyfriend held a protective arm around her shoulders. There was a beer bottle in his hand.
Tadashi shoved Hiro behind him.
"I..." Tadashi's voice trailed off. The anger was still in his stomach, but wasn't enough to power him. Hiro wouldn't be the only one to get it tonight. He knew that for sure.
"I honestly don't know what you expect me to do," she continued, her voice eerily calm. "You know, I thought we'd have a calm talk together. I thought. But it's clear that neither of you can take anything seriously."
She stared at the two of them, as if expecting them to say something. Before Tadashi can push Hiro up the stairs, it happened.
She slapped Tadashi square across the face.
He didn't feel it until Hiro let out a gaping sound. Then the stinging came.
"What do you expect me to do?" She repeated, glaring at him.
"Hiro," Tadashi said, his voice low.
"I"m not leaving you here," Hiro fired back under his breath.
"Didn't she ask you a question?" Boyfriend asked, stepping forward. Tadashi pushed Hiro toward the counter.
"I-"
Boyfriend kicked at Tadashi's shins, swiping him to the ground. He didn't even have enough time to catch his breath before another kick came.
And another.
And another.
They came everywhere, so fast, that he didn't know where they were coming from. One minute he felt pain in his head, then his ribs, then his back. He could faintly hear Hiro's voice in the background, but everything seemed so far away. Like he was watching a movie, only with the sound on low and the image flickering.
"You're disgusting," he heard his mother say from somewhere above him. "Absolutely nothing like your father. I don't even believe that you share the same DNA."
He thought of his father's kind smile, of his understand eyes. Of the way that he could almost fix everything, from machines to arguments. Of the way he made their mother smile and laugh like no one else could.
The way the light vanished from her eyes at his funeral.
"I'll kill you," she screeched, her voice sounding closer. "You were a mistake then, and you're a mistake now. I can get rid of you right now, and no one would even care."
Tadashi thought of Hiro, leaving him alone to this. He couldn't. Hiro had been Tadashi's responsibility ever since their father died, and he would not leave his brother to suffer here. It wasn't an option.
"Hiro," Tadashi wheezed out. "Go."
Hiro said something, but Tadashi couldn't make out the words. There was a sharp pain in his head that wouldn't stop throbbing.
"Dashi."
Tadashi tried to open his eyes, but all he could see were dark spots. He struggled to wheeze in air.
"Come on, nii-san," Hiro pleaded from somewhere-maybe above him? "You can't leave me here. You gotta wake up. Please."
The kid wasn't at the diner the next day, either. Bucky got there at three and stayed until closing, as if the kid would come in at nine.
When he got back to the tower, he didn't give anyone any time to talk to him. He just slammed the door to the room they called his.
"Someone's in a mood," Tony murmured.
Steve glared at him.
Sam frowned at the door.