Big Hero 6 One-Shots

Birthday Blues

Despite the fun he's having, Hiro can't shake the empty feeling of Tadashi being gone on his birthday  (tumblr request)

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Fifteen. While it wasn't a huge birthday for Hiro, his friends were determined to make it a fun, eventful day. Each of them had picked a different activity to do, surprising Hiro with what came next. It all started in the morning right after everyone finished breakfast. Their first stop was at an arcade which was Fred's idea. He was happy to give Hiro tons of quarters so he could play as many games as he wanted to. Once everyone was finished there, they went to the mall, Honey Lemon's pick, where they only went to stores of Hiro's choosing. After having lunch at the food court, Wasabi's location was next. They spent a couple hours wandering through an art museum. Finally, Gogo's choice was last and it was arguably the most promising one. Hiro had been talking nonstop about a movie he wanted to see for weeks now, so taking him to see it on his birthday felt like a good option.

Yet, despite the amount of enjoyment Hiro got out of this day, an odd feeling managed to bother him from time to time. It had been a good birthday; a great birthday for that matter. It was the first birthday he had where he was celebrating with friends and they all went out for him. At the same time, it was also the first birthday he was having without Tadashi.

Sure, that unsettling fact had been in the back of his mind all day. It was impossible not to think about throughout all the excitement he was genuinely having. Though, with each new location they went to, it seemed to have brought on fond, yet bittersweet, memories. When they went to the arcade, it reminded Hiro of his fifth birthday. Cass took them to an arcade where both himself and Tadashi competed against each other with every two-player game possible. At the mall, Hiro thought back to his eighth birthday when Tadashi let him pick any store he wanted to go to and then pick any item he wanted as long as it was under a certain price limit. The museum brought back a memory on his tenth birthday when him and Tadashi walked through a robotics exhibit. While the movie was a pleasant distraction, it did remind Hiro of just two years prior to when Tadashi took him to see his first PG-13 movie.

It felt like a tradition to the now fifteen-year-old. Every year on his birthday, Tadashi would take him somewhere to celebrate. Although his friends were doing a similar thing, it didn't feel quite the same.

Unfortunately, he didn't keep his emotions well hidden. There were times where the others clearly noticed Hiro slightly out of his element and questioned if he was okay. Trying not to worry them further, he always lightened up and responded with him being fine. To him, he really was okay...or at the very least he would be. All he had to do was shake away his past memories and attempt to move on. Even though his friends continued to show concern, they didn't say much aside from asking how he felt.

The end of what seemed to be a successful birthday concluded with cake and ice cream at the cafe. As they all began to sing to him, he couldn't stop the empty pit in his stomach from forming. This truly was a nice day. He got to spend the entire day with his friends and he got to do things he always enjoyed doing. Shouldn't he be happy? Why couldn't he be happy?

Once the end of the traditional birthday song was sung, Hiro blew out his candles. Although doing so in one puff of air, the careless expression to match caught everyone else off guard. As his friends shared looks of dismay, Cass took it upon herself to reach out to her nephew.

"What's the matter, sweetie?" She lightly placed her hands on his shoulders. As she got another good look at his face, she could tell that a frown had grown. "I made your favorite flavor, right?"

She was hoping for a nod, yet got a shrug in response instead. Truthfully, she did make his favorite flavor. He looked forward to a chocolate cake every year. Unfortunately, he had no appetite to enjoy it. In fact, he didn't feel like doing much of anything for the rest of the evening. All he wanted was for the rest of this birthday to pass by.

Of course, he did owe his aunt and friends an explanation for his rather somber mood. He couldn't lie and he certainly couldn't pretend he was doing fine. Right now, he only wished that this subject could be easier to talk about.

"I-I'm alright..." He trailed off, hesitating on what to say next. "I just...this is my first birthday without Tadashi, so..."

The mere mention of his late brothers' name instantly grabbed their attention. Suddenly, his peculiar mood swings throughout the day made more sense. Memories of Tadashi always had a bigger impact on the young teenager during important events.

Cass didn't hold back on wrapping her arms around him, squeezing him to her heart's content. "Oh, Hiro..."

"Hiro, we are so sorry," Honey Lemon began. "We didn't mean--"

"No, don't apologize. I had a really great day, honest! I mean...yeah, I was a little off throughout the day, but I had fun. It might be my first birthday without him, but it was also my first with all of you! You all really went out of your way to make this day great, so thank you."

Everyone knew Hiro meant what he said. Though, they all could tell that despite his kind words, Hiro was still hurting. He had been hurting and they hardly did anything to help him out.

"Well, we wanted to make sure you'd have a good birthday."

"We understand why it was hard on you today though," Wasabi chimed in.

As Hiro's supportive group of friends began to surround him in what was becoming a group hug, Gogo stated, "All of us are here for you, okay?"

No words were said. The group hug lasted in peaceful silence, successfully lifting Hiro's spirits. Perhaps this birthday didn't go quite the way he would have liked, but there was no doubt he felt incredibly lucky to have the people he has in his life.

If he could get through this birthday, he knew he could get through every birthday yet to come.

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well I hope that was enjoyable! I can definitely see Hiro a little sad on his first birthday without Tadashi. It's only natural for him to miss him, especially on meaningful days. Luckily he's got a good support system!