"Dashi is my family."
Hiro hasn't seen his brother in days.
Okay, maybe he's exaggerating. After all, he was the first person who saw Dashi when he woke up. And he was there practically every second after, hovering around her brother's bedside and probably driving Bruce insane. He and Tadashi were used to sharing a room, but here at the tower, they even shared a bed.
But it's not enough. Especially since they're in a gigantic tower with a bunch of crazies who can save the world, but somehow have no idea how to take care of themselves. Except for the red-headed woman. She seemed like she could handle herself just fine.
He supposes that it isn't as bad as being back at home with their mom, but things still aren't going the way that Hiro would like.
Bucky and Tadashi disappear for hours at a time. Hiro isn't even sure what there is to do around here (alright, that's a lie. He's seen Bruce's lab firsthand, so he knows that there are millions more opportunities for him to come up with some sick tech. Not that he'd mess around with the Hulk's stuff.
No, he'd have to find a way to get into Tony's lab.)
Tadashi insists that the big brooding guy-Bucky-isn't as bad as he seems. That he got to know him a little before, while working in the diner. That he's really a good guy underneath it all.
But Hiro just doesn't see it.
He settles for wandering around with Steve, who isn't so bad. The guy is Captain America, for crying out loud. Hiro doesn't exactly have a problem with that. Plus, he never yells. He doesn't push for Hiro to talk when he doesn't want to. Sometimes Steve fills the silence by himself, and sometimes he doesn't. The guy has to eat, like every twenty minutes to stay sane, which means double snacks.
Steve's not such a bad guy.
But Hiro still misses his brother.
He doesn't realize how angry he actually is until he wakes up one day, maybe a week after they first came to the tower. All Hiro knows is that it's been more than two days and Tadashi hasn't talked about what they're going to do next.
Tadashi's always the one who wants to come up with a plan. But every time Hiro tries to ask, Tadashi just brushes him off.
"Sorry, bud," Steve says when Hiro pads into the kitchen. It's smaller than the one on the main floor, because it's only Bucky, Steve and Sam using it. It used to only be them, anyway. "Your brother and Bucky left this morning."
Sam doesn't like the way the boy's eyebrows crease, the way that he glares at the ground.
But he doesn't say anything. Instead, he and Steve share a look.
He starts to feel concern building up, especially since Hiro sits at the couch and refuses to move until Tadashi comes back. By the time Bucky and the older boy returns, it's been hours.
Steve can practically see the steam coming out of Hiro's ears. He knows that the kid can be pretty feisty, but this doesn't exactly seem like it's something that's just normal. It seems like something he actually needs to try to do something about. The only thing is that he isn't actually sure what he can do.
"Maybe you should pull him aside," Sam says, keeping his voice hushed. "Even if he doesn't want to talk, spending a little extra time with him might help."
The only thing is that, when Steve walks outside of his room (or floor or whatever Stark calls it), the damage already seems to be done.
"It's not that hard to understand," Tadashi is saying. "The original Star Wars movies came out in the 70s, probably around the time that you were born. And the trilogy came out in the 2000s. Those are the ones with Natalie Portman."
"What makes you think I was born in the 70s?" Bucky asks.
Tadashi smiles. "Was I being too generous?"
Hiro just stares and stares and stares. Tadashi doesn't look at him until there's the sound of a smash. There are little shards of white on the ground, and it takes a couple of seconds for Tadashi to realize that his brother just smashed a plate. And Hiro's narrowed eyes, filled with fury, are staring right at Bucky.
Bucky takes a step forward, but Hiro steps back, holding his hands up.
"Hiro," Tadashi stars, but the younger boy shakes his head.
"Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up," he snaps, shaking his head. "Dashi is my family, alright? Dashi is my brother and he's all I've got left and you're not going to take him away from me."
His eyes don't move from Bucky.
"I won't let you."
Tadashi is staring at his brother, mouth half open. "H-Hiro."
Bucky shuffles to the side. Toward the door. Steve freezes, sharing a look with Sam, who nods.
"Hiro," Steve says, voice low. Bucky has already left the room, and he feels his heart in his throat. "Bucky isn't trying to steal Tadashi."
"You don't know that," Hiro says, lip trembling.
"But I know," Tadashi says. "Nobody is going to steal me away, okay?"
He takes a step forward, wrapping Hiro in his arms. Steve can see Tadashi's face, set hard and determined, but he knows that the older kid can't be faring much better. Steve sighs, slumping against the wall.
They're all going to be in therapy forever.