"So where are we going first?" Tadashi asked Mn as they strolled through the mall, hand in hand.
  "I was thinking Quests," he replied. "Wanted to check out some of  the new shoes there. Then maybe after that we can go to Carly's?" Mn walked backwards while facing him.
  "Treating yourself, are you?"
  "What? I thought you were treating me!"
  "Ha, very funny."
  Mn grinned and moved back to Tadashi's side.

  Tadashi’s mind wandered to all the things that have happened lately. He finally introduced Mn to Hiro, despite the fact it was unplanned and didn't go too well. Or maybe it went a little too well? It was getting hard to tell. Hiro is growing up. Discovering himself. He's fourteen and already ready for college! And not just any college, but SFIT! He's finally doing something with his life...something their parents would be very proud of. Something he was proud of.
  But then the other day, well, happened. Tadashi had never seen Hiro cry like that..
  "Is there anywhere you wanted to go?"
  It was so out of character for him. Hiro had always been the little boy genius, so capable and independent. He didn't follow Tadashi’s footsteps, he crafted his own. He was the smartest kid Tadashi knew. One of the cockiest as well. But at the same time, Hiro liked to hide his insecurities. He brushed them off like crumbs and replaced them with arrogance. But Tadashi could always see through his little raids. The kid couldn't even outright say he had a crush.
  Tadashi almost couldn't say anything. What could he say in a situation like that? He had only been joking that one time...
  "Tadashi?"
  Tadashi awoke from his stupor and blinked at the wide set grey eyes in front of him.
  "You good?" Mn asked, eyebrows knitted together.
  "Oh..yeah.." Tadashi cleared his throat.
  "Is there anywhere you want to go?"
  "Oh..no, I'm ok with whatever. Let's just hang out."
  Mn gave him a concerned look and squeezed their interlocked hands before letting go. "Alright? Well, we're here."
   Tadashi spent the time Mn was looking around thinking to himself about what happened on Gogo's birthday and how it got to this point-

  "Tadashi!" Honey exclaimed excitedly, only to quickly turn her attention to the younger boy next to him. "Oh my gosh! You must be Hiro!" She got up and ran to him. "I've heard SO MUCH ABOUT YOU!" she ripped out her earplugs and gave him a kiss on both cheeks before leading him to her latest project.
  Tadashi smiled as he watched them interact. When pink powder exploded in both of their faces, Tadashi figured it was a good time to step in.
  "Good job, Honey Lemon."
  "Honey Lemon? Gogo? Wasabi?" Hiro asked, his eyes wandering to the strange man who walked up beside Tadashi.
  A hand was placed on the oldest Hamada’s shoulder and upon turning around a soft pair of lips pressed to his.
  "I spilled Wasabi on my shirt one time people. One! Time!" The exclamation forced away the sweet and tender moment, along with Tadashi's shock. He glanced down at his little brother and his dropped jaw.
  "Oh, hey..Mn..!" He tried to smile encouragingly at the older man, who he had yet to even mention to his fourteen year old, possibly judgemental little brother.
   He glanced down at Mn’s lips and then back up at his wide set, roundish-almond grey eyes. His short light brown hair was brushed and covered his thin eyebrows for the most part. That day, the twenty-three year old was wearing his favorite cyan blue and black raglan shirt and a pair of skinny jeans with timberlands covering his beige skin.
  "Mn, this is my brother, Hiro!" Tadashi introduced stiffly, eyebrows arched and wide grin in place directed toward the man, willing him to understand the gravity of the situation.
  Mn's eyes widened and his face paled noticeably. He turned to Hiro and grinned awkwardly as Tadashi continued. "Hiro, this is Mn, another weird nickname to add to the book!" Mn elbowed him, his Ben doll grin still in place. "And my boyfriend..of, uh," Tadashi coughed, "two years."
  "It was more than one time, by the way." Mn put his arm around his equally tall boyfriend's shoulders and pointed his free hand's thumb behind him to where Wasabi just was. His expression became more natural and he smiled genuinely, but Hiro's look of witnessed blasphemy had not settled. "Uh..." He was starting to feel the awkwardness setting in, even more than before. "My real name's Tyrone Nial Evans, nice to finally meet you?"
  "I come up with the nicknames!" Hiro screamed in surprise and Tadashi sighed in relief as Fred came up behind him in his mascot costume and introduced himself.
  For the rest of that night, up until he met Professor Callaghan, Hiro had acted differently around Tadashi. He seemed..uncomfortable.

  Wow, how the times have changed, Tadashi thought.
   "You ready to go?"
   "Huh?" Once again pulled out of his daydreaming, he looked up at Mn. He didn't have a bag in his hands so he assumed the man didn't buy anything. "Oh, yeah."
   "Next up: Carly's!" And they took off once more.
   No one seemed to mind them as they passed through the mall while holding hands. It was hard to believe that decades ago people would be brutally murdered for things like this. Of course there were still people out there, but they seemed few in many. None of their friends had ever judged them when they told them they were going out. Actually, they were expecting it. But that was a story for another time.
  "Oh, dude, try this on!"
  "What? Why?"
  "You'd look good in it!" Mn paused. "Well, you look good in anything- but this seems your style. Try it on?"
  Tadashi sighed, but took the hangers out of Mn's hands and headed toward the stalls. "You know, trying on clothes isn't actually all that fun when you're putting them on-"
   "Sh-sh-sh-sh! It'll be like those boyfriend tag things, it'll be fun."
  Tadashi shut the door behind him and Mn leaned against it and continued on with his one sided conversation.
   "We'll take pictures and act all obnoxious like those Instaphoto couples and I'll spam Fred with them when he tries to talk about how lonely he is."
  "Wow," Tadashi said sarcastically. "I thought you guys were friends."
  "This is what best friends do, Tadashi. If I can't make fun of you when you're around then we can't be friends."
  Tadashi laughed.
  After Tadashi finished putting on the clothes, he let himself out and revealed himself to marvelling eyes.
  "So how does this "tag" go again?" Tadashi wore a black and white striped cardigan with a black t shirt underneath, and a pair of black fitted jeans.
  "Gorgeous-" Mn blinked and met Tadashi's eyes. "I mean, what?"
  Tadashi laughed. "Charming." He looked down at the sweater. "What brand is this anyway? Pancake?"

  “Ha, no, it's Pancora.” Mn walked up and tugged at his striped cardigan.

  “Like, the show? I don't know, I thought Character was better-”

  “That joke was incredible.” Mn smiled with bland sarcasm. “Wow, this sweater feels nice.”

  “It’s a cardigan and yes, it does.” Tadashi put a hand on Mn's wrist but didn't move it.

  “Sweater, cardigan, same thing.”

  “Take that back or this relationship is over.”

  Mn grinned. “Sorry, didn't mean to press your buttons.”

  Tadashi's face went blank. “Did you just-”

 Mn grinned harder, pulling at Tadashi's cardigan and one of its three buttons.

  “Unbelievable.”
  Mn's eyes almost popped out of his head as he burst out into a fit of laughter. "Come on, that was good! You love me!" He held his hand over his stomach as he leant forward. “Come on, say it. You love me.”

   Tadashi gave him a blank look but the instance Mn came up to him and put his arm around him in a hug, Tadashi couldn't help a few chuckles. The more the twenty-one year old felt the other's shoulders tremble, the more he found the situation funny and the more he laughed with him.

   “Yeah. Alright.”

  “Ah ha!”
  "Ok. Your turn." Tadashi said after his boyfriend calmed down and pulled away.
  Tadashi searched for an outfit for Mn and pushed the man into the stall with the hangers wrapped with clothes in hand.
  Mn came out a minute later with a low-collared, draping white shirt with the words "Blood Colored" on the front and a bloody grinning emoji face with sideways bug eyes and slits as pupils underneath the brand name. Mn frequently bought these branded shirts, but whenever someone asked about it he said he “just saw it, liked it, and picked it up". He also wore blue jean capris, cuffs rolled up at the thigh.
  "I like it." Mn looked down at it and let his arms drop to his side with a cushioned slap. His gaze returned to Tadashi, who was staring off into the distance.
  Well, he was staring in his direction, but not focusing on him. Like he was deep in thought. His eyebrows were creased above his hazy brown eyes and his mouth was almost in a pout.

  "Tadashi?"
  "Huh?" He snapped out of his thoughts.

  Mn rose an eyebrow at him. His voice lowered a octave. "Ok, what's wrong?" He had noticed Tadashi had been acting weird since that morning. Mn wasn't going to push it- rather, he wanted to wait until Tadashi would tell him himself, but he was starting to feel ignored.
  "Hiro has a crush on you."
  Shoot.
  There was a moment of dead silence, like a gunshot had just rang through the air.
   "What...?" Mn laughed incredulously, but the ripple in his voice betrayed his awkwardness.
   Tadashi sighed and rubbed his hand over his face, pinching the area between his eyes with his forefinger and thumb. "The other day, on Gogo's birthday, I found Hiro crying over you." He peered up at Mn, who had walked closer.
  His eyebrows were furrowed in disbelief and his eyes were squinted as if he was staring at a child's horrific drawing of him. His smile was crooked and forced, like he was gritting his teeth behind his lips.
  "That's impossible," he said. Tadashi felt the air he didn't know he was holding in his lungs quickly release. "Hiro hates me."
  "He doesn't hate you," Trust me, "Knucklehead." He added. "He just needed time to adjust to you." Tadashi arched his brows and pulled his lips behind his teeth. "And adjust he did.."
  Mn scoffed and softly bopped him on the side of the head before turning around and walking toward the rows of clothing. "Sure, he has been a bit nicer since we watched that movie but still!” He swung around on his heels and took a moment to think. "..And even if it was true, it wouldn't change anything. I'm still your boyfriend."
  Tadashi couldn't help but smile at that. He followed him. "Yeah..obviously. It's not like you're gonna dump me and date my brother. My fourteen year old brother." He reminded.
  "Yeah, that's in’ creepy, dude. He's practically half my age. And also, he can't compare to you. " Mn grinned and took Tadashi's hands in his, pulling them closer and resting their foreheads together.

  “Ha!” Tadashi pushed him back playfully. “Stop trying to be cute.”

   Mn grinned, pulling Tadashi back to him. He kissed his nose briefly before turning around to the racks of clothing. "Anyway, that's really awkward." He grabbed some layers of clothes, walked around to another rack and got some jeans, then passed them to Tadashi. "Try these on."
  The conversation continued through the stall door, Mn once again leaning against it. No one had said anything yet about them loitering around so they weren't gonna leave just yet. Carly's wasn't even a clothing store. It had a bunch of cool hipster crap in the front, some merch on the walls, two racks of hipster clothing, shelves of provocative and immature toys, and some adult things in the back. The store was relatively small and really crowded with junk that people got for kicks. Memes crowded the shelf where the register was and the wall beside it held pins and cups with pop culture references marked on their fronts.
  "Children are weird."
  "I don't mind them," Mn replied, hands shaking. "They're cute when they're babies."
  "Yeah, but when they become teenagers that's it for me."
  "Teenagers? Five years old are when they gotta go."
  Tadashi laughed. "Well, I've already dealt with one child, don't know if I can take anymore."
  "Mm.." Mn hummed in fake amusement, furrowing his eyebrows and squeezing his lips into a thin line. He took a few seconds to think of how to say what he wanted to say next. "Are you serious..?" He asked, then wished he hadn’t.

  "Huh?" There were rustling sounds coming from behind him. "...I guess when that time comes, it comes." He said it so nonchalantly. It almost threw Mn off, if it didn't relieve him so much. "Maybe one day, maybe not." The door opened behind him and Mn moved out of the way and turned around, phone in hand. "What brought this on?"
  Distracted by Tadashi's new clothes, Mn was slow to the highly anticipated, as well as unwanted, question. "Uh.." He stammered. "Uh, I was just thinking about my nephew. I was thinking of going to see him soon."
  "Ah," he nodded.  "How are Chase and Canba?"
  "Chase is getting around, I guess.." Mn shrugged, wondering when the last time he had talked to his brother was. "Don't really talk to him that much. Kachi either."
  Mn and his brothers were widely spread apart, despite the fact that he usually talks so proudly of them. Kachi is the oldest brother and is known for disappearing for months at a time, while Chase is the second oldest and lives with his husband and child, who’s also Mn's nephew, Canba. Chase is a indie singer and musician of various genres. He has CD's out and everything. Though, he still wasn't well known to the general public.
  Tadashi mouthed an O shape and straightened out his clothes, raising his eyebrows at Mn in question. "Picture?"
  The outfit this time consisted of a t-shirt with a cartoon monkey and a smiley face on top of his head with the words By Military- under it, the rest of the text covered by his long, drooping blue button up cardigan under his tan oversized coat. A blue-dotted white scarf covered both sides of his neck, unknotted, and he wore black skinny jeans.
  After the pictures, Tadashi found another outfit for Mn and waited outside the door while he got dressed.
  "Scared of being tied down?" Mn joked.
  "And you? Didn't Chase get married at your age?"
  "Wow, you sound like a mom."
  "Ha, dodging the question, are we?"
  "Ok, but didn't I ask you first?"
  "I'm married to my pursuit of education."
  "So you're married to Baymax?"
  "It’s a joke, moron. Anyway, he's more like my baby than anything."
  "I thought I was your baby?"
  "I don't remember having a kid as annoying as you-"
  "Oh, wow."
  Tadashi breathed out a laugh. "You love me."
  "I'm not so sure anymore." Mn said through the door in a condescending way, a hint of amusement in his deep voice.

  "Come on.."
  "No."
  "Come onnn..!"
  "Nope!"

  A moment of silence followed.
  "You're making the face, aren't you?" Mn accused from behind the door.
  "Mhm.."
  "You know I can't take that pouty look!"
  "Exactly. That's why I'm doing it."
  Mn came out wearing a big tan coat, a pink vest, and a black shirt with a regular pair of blue jeans. The coat made him seem bigger than he was, while the pink vest was a slim fit around his scrawny torso.
  Tadashi grabbed hold of Mn's coat and fixed the collar. Something occurred to him. "Oh yeah, so you're planning on working at the cafe or something?"
  "I don't know." Mn thought for a moment. "Maybe? Just for a little bit until I get a callback. During my free time."
  "Free time?" Tadashi rose an eyebrow. "Don't you mean me time?"
  "Isn't that the same thing? I always feel free when I'm with you." Mn smirked as Tadashi laughed.
  "Wow, that was smooth."
  "Do I detect a hint of sarcasm?"  Mn asked, amused, once more strolling to the rack to search for one more outfit.
  "It's the fact that you looked so proud of yourself! You couldn't of possibly expected me to not ruin the mood."

  “Honestly, that pun was horrible and never again.”

  “Wha-”

 “Never again.” Mn walked back around and Tadashi took the racks of clothing into his hands. The outfit consisted of a blue-lined and white button up and dress pants with a brown leather belt. Simple but classy. Tadashi responded with a vanilla sweater, which miraculously had the acronym MN in big bold letters on the front with squiggly lines emphasising it, and gray sweatpants.
   "Smile!" Mn turned his face away as Tadashi snapped a picture. They took a couple more pictures together before leaving for lunch in the food court.
   
   "Foooood~" Mn was salivating as he looked at the delicious and heart-attack inducing junk food before him. A cheeseburger with a golden bun and fries that sparkled with salt like a ray of sunshine lay on the round table top, across from Tadashi's tray of bronze chicken nuggets and equally as tantalizing fries. Of course, they could have just waited to eat at the cafe, but then it wouldn't be as personal. They ate there every other day. What's wrong with some good ol' cafeteria food in a bustling food court every once in awhile?
  Tadashi gazed at Mn with a sparkle in his eye and a upturn of his lips. Mn regarded his food with relish, lifting the burger up and as he savored his first bite. It was the first time he'd eaten all day.
  Tadashi picked up a fry and bit into it. "How's Fredrick going?"
  "Hm? Mm," Mn took a moment to swallow his food. "Ugh...still needs a lot more work. I can't do anything until the parts come in..."
  "They still haven't arrived yet?" Tadashi asked incredulously.
  "No! It's annoying, too. Just making it is gonna take long enough, and getting the parts that I need has already taken three months!"
  "Have you talked to Professor Callaghan-" the look on Mn's face made the answer clear enough. "No..." He sighed, feeling Mn's pain. He scratched at the side of his head, squeezing his eyes shut as he did it. "Sorry, man. I wish there was some way I could help..."
  Mn shook his head, swallowing another bite. "Nah, I called them and they said if it's not here by Friday then I will probably have to go get it."
  "That ,"
  Mn shrugged again, taking another bite.
  Frederick was the whole reason Mn is in SFIT. It's been his project for the last two years, even before he came to the college. Frederick is a machine he's created that is suppose to replace the need for teachers, or even schools, with the ability to retain all known knowledge of academic related topics and transfer all the info in spouts to the brain. Each subject topic should only take two hours to input, and at the moment Mn is programming it with all of history.

  Giggles dragged Tadashi out of his thoughts. He turned around to see a group of two girls and a boy glancing their way and giggling. When he caught their eye they were quick to turn away. He turned around with a small wave to which the boy blushed and the girls giggled more in reply before walking off. Mn was looking at him.

  “Hey, you think I'm cute?” Mn asked suddenly, expression thoughtful.

  “...No, not at all.” Tadashi replied with a blank face and monotone voice. “I have nightmares every time I see you.”

  Mn pouted. “Tell me I'm pretty.”

  Tadashi smiled. “You're pretty annoying, that's what you are.”

  “I'm insulted.”

  “You asked.” Then Tadashi laughed. “No, really. They were totally looking at you.”

  “There's not much to look at.” Mn said plainly. “I'm pretty plain.”

  “Oh please, every time I see you you're being extra.”

  “I'm literally wearing a t-shirt and jeans.”

  “I guess you're just a natural. They look really nice on you.”

  Mn ignored the compliment,“They were definitely looking at you.”

 “What? Pfft!” Tadashi waved his hand flippantly. “You're just flirting with me.”

  “When am I not flirting with you?” Mn grinned.

  “See? That! That, right there!” Tadashi motioned to Mn's face. “You're unbelievably charming.”

  Mn took a bite of his sandwich. “There are lies in my chicken sandwich.”
  Tadashi chucked. “What does that even mean?”

  “Something is amiss.” Mn sniffed the air. “I smell bull.”

  “Where did you even get that phrase from?”

  “‘There are lies in my chicken sandwich?’ I got it just now. While eating. It's my new catchphrase.”

 “That doesn't even make any sense, you're eating a cheeseburger.”

  “That's exactly it! That's what's amiss!”

  Tadashi shook his head and chuckled. “That's why you and Fred are best friends.”

  “Actually, what's amiss is how the you find me charming. But ok, babe.”
  “I question it too. Don't worry.”
 

  Pine trees passed by in a flurry of green. A gleam of white crossed over the car’s front window as Mn drove surrounded by the lush forest and a honey-colored sky. Tadashi doze off with his cheek in his palm and his jet black hair against the window, mouth slightly hanging open and eyeballs twitching behind the lids as the sun's rays blinked through the branches onto his eyes. The road before them is empty; devoid of anyone except them and the music flowing soothingly around the inside of the car. Mn hummed silently to the lyrics.
  "Yeah, I wish you were mi~ne" the soft low voice sung. "Oooh~"
  The acoustic guitar was slowly lulling Tadashi to sleep, but before he could drift any deeper he moved his free hand off the cap in his lap to the hand settled, motionless, atop the shift.
  "As the winter blows, I feel the same.." Mn stiffens up, but quickly relaxes and spreads his fingers on the shift to intertwine Tadashi's fingers with his own. "This new lover calls me lazy.."
  Drifting off, Tadashi smiled softly.
  He could rest, even if it's just for a little while. This was ok. At least until he gets back to the cafe.
  He deserves this.