A New Angle

"Aw, come on Hiro, don't look at me like that." I begged.

The boy pouted, his expression was one of a betrayed puppy.

I sighed heavily, "You know, it's not like I wanted to get the stomach flu. I'd really rather be at a bot fight then lying here in a room that reeks of disinfectants. "

"Then come with me." Hiro pleaded his eyes wide with hope.

"I would, but I don't really want to pass out on you. After all, that is the whole reason why I'm in the hospital." I reasoned with him.

I was admitted a day ago after passing out from a high fever. I had been vomiting the whole day but refused to go to the pharmacy, claiming that it was just the flu and I'd sleep it off. However, I was sadly mistaken. After puking for the umpteenth time that day, I finally decided to go to the drug store to get some medication. I had no idea that my fever would spike on my outing and that I'd end up fainting right there in the aisles. The pharmacist had to call an ambulance and the next thing I knew, I was waking up in this thoroughly sterilized hospital room.

"But, Shizu, we've been working on this bot for over a month. You can't just bail out on me now." Hiro exclaimed, effectively pulling me back to the matter at hand.

"Hey! Who said I was bailing out!" I argued, "I still want to add wings to it."

The genius groaned, "I thought we went over this. Why would it need wings when it's already got sufficient destructive powers?"

"Because everything's just better if you have wings." I shot back, "I mean who doesn't want to fly? And besides, with an upgrade like that, it'd automatically make it the coolest bot in all of San Fransokyo!"

Hiro sighed in defeat.

"Okay fine. If I added wings to it, then will you come to the bot fight with me?" the boy compromised.

I chuckled, "Yeah. But the bot fight's today, genius. You're never gonna make it on time."

Hiro glanced at the monitor by my head and swore colourfully, "I'm gonna be late. I've got 15 minutes to book across town."

"Then you'd better get going." I prompted.

Hiro fixed me with one last look.

"You owe me a bot fight." He said pointedly before disappearing out the door.

I smiled at his enthusiasm. Little did I know that a bot fight wasn't all I'd be owing him.

*~*~*~*

Hiro groaned in frustration as he tossed away yet another balled up piece of paper.

"Nothing. No idea. Useless, empty brain." He yelled as he repeatedly slammed his forehead onto his desk.

The image of him on my monitor rattled a bit from the force of his aggravation.

"If you spit out one more self-degrading thought, I will personally march over to your house and slap you." I declared to the genius.

"You don't get it Shizu." The boy's voice was muffled by the table, then raising his head up to the camera he said, genuinely, "I really want to get into this school."

Taken aback by the sudden seriousness in his voice I commented, "Wow, I haven't seen you try this hard since grade 7 when you desperately wanted to win that robotics competition. I've got to say I'm impressed. Whatever Tadashi did to you, it worked."

"Are you here to tease me or help me?" Hiro carped.

"Sorry, sorry." I apologized, surrendering my hands up in guilt, "It's kind of hard not to reminisce when you're by yourself in a hospital room."

"Speaking of which… I've been meaning to ask, why exactly are you still in the hospital?" Hiro questioned, "I thought you said it was just the stomach flu."

"Yeah, I know. But the doctors said they found something odd in my blood sample. They believe it was just a fluke, likely caused by a dirty syringe or something, but they wanted to do extra tests just in case. You know, make sure everything's okay before they release me." I explained.

"Oh, I see." Hiro said absently as he tapped the back of his pencil against his chin, trying desperately to come up with a showcase project that would blow Professor Callaghan away.

Ten minutes passed silently like this, with Hiro furiously scribbling down ideas and throwing them out just as fast.

"I got nothing!" The mixed breed finally yelled in aggravation, throwing down his pencil for added effect, "I'm done. I'm never getting in!"

I sighed.

"Okay. Hiro listen to me," I reasoned, "You're a genius. You graduated high school at the age of 13. You're the smartest person I know. Heck, I can even vouch for you being the smartest 14-year-old in all of San Fransokyo. If you can't do this, then I don't know who can. Just calm down. Find a new angle."

"Did someone say new angle?" Tadashi's voice emerged unexpectedly from the background.

Hiro was suddenly jerked violently from his seat and thrown onto Tadashi's shoulders.

"Tadashi!" I exclaimed cheerfully as he came into view on my screen.

"Hey Shizu." The older Hamada greeted me with a smile while dangling Hiro upside down.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Hiro yelled in irritation.

"Shaking things up!" Tadashi replied optimistically, "Come on! Use that big brain of yours to think your way out."

I couldn't help but laugh at their unusual display of brotherly love.

"Put me down!" Hiro demanded uselessly as Tadashi continued to harass him.

Suddenly, the prodigy stopped struggling against his older brother and became unnervingly still. He was facing his computer – granted upside down – giving me a clear view of the expression on his face. He looked as if he was deep in thought, completely captivated by the idea that was undoubtedly growing in that large brain of his.

"That's it!" he shouted in joy, as the epiphany finally manifested itself.

Hiro dropped to the floor and scrambled to his computer, a look of solid determination etched on his face.

Oh yeah, now we're talking.

Callaghan had better watch out because when Hiro got serious… well let's just say that shit just got very real.

*~*~*~*

"I can't believe you're not going to be there at the convention." Hiro scolded through the receiver, "The one time I decide to fully commit myself to a cause and my best friend's not here to support me in person."

"I'm sorry!" I cried, a look of genuine regret displayed plainly my face, "My official diagnosis comes out today. They won't let me go before then."

"They're sure making a big deal out of this stomach flu thing." Hiro commented, warily.

"I know. But it's protocol. They can't bypass the system." I replied, then said sincerely, "I promise I'll make this up to you."

"You better!" the boy exclaimed then added, "And don't think I forgot about that bot fight you still owe me."

"Hey, you're getting into nerd school. You don't have time for bot fights." I reasoned, trying in vain to reduce the amount of debts I seemed to have incurred.

"A promise is a promise." He shot back pointedly.

"That's true." I said slowly then reluctantly, "Okay, fine. I'll make that up to you too."

"Good." The genius responded feeling a little more satisfied with the situation.

A car horn suddenly sounded from the other end of the phone, quickly followed by Tadashi's urgent voice, "Come on, Hiro we got to go."

"Looks like that's your cue." I chirped.

"Yup, gotta run. I have no idea how long this convention is gonna take so don't wait up." The boy advised.

"Okay, but you better tell me all about it first thing tomorrow. I want to know everything! No skimping on the details." I warned.

"Oh, don't worry about that. Aunt Cass is probably going to document the whole thing from start to finish. When it comes to family, she tends to go overboard." Hiro laughed.

I smirked, "I know. I was there at your first robotics competition, remember?"

Aunt Cass had brought 4 video recorders and propped them out to face all 4 sides of the stage. If I hadn't known any better, I'd thought she was doing a news report.

Another honk was heard in the background drawing me from my reverie.

"Okay, I got to go, or else I'm really going to be late." The prodigy stated.

"Hiro wait." I said quickly before he could hang up.

"Yeah?" the genius's response came way too fast.

I smiled. Yup, he was definitely nervous.

"Good luck." I encouraged, "You've got this."

Although I couldn't see the grin on his face, I knew it was there. I heard it in his voice.

"Thanks Shizu."

And then the phone clicked off.

*~*~*~*

I stared blankly at the monitor, my mind furiously trying to decipher the words on the screen. The letters seemed to meld together, creating a jumble of symbols that were completely foreign to me. It was as if I was reading an alien language.

The doctor was saying something but I couldn't hear a word that came out of his mouth. It was like somebody had unplugged all my sensory receptors and rewired them back in the wrong order.

Through my confused perception, I was just able to make out 4 words on the diagnosis chart. They screamed at me in a brilliant red, blinking like police sirens.

I forgot how to breathe. The blood drained from my body and I felt numb all over. There's got to be some kind of mistake. I'm only 14, for crying out loud. They probably mixed up my test results with another patient's. Maybe the equipment that they used for the analysis was faulty. Or maybe they just pulled up the wrong file. Whatever the case was, that was definitely not my condition… was it?

Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia - Terminal

*~*~*~*

Beep beep. Beep beep.

I woke to an incessant electronic noise. It was still dark outside and a quick glance at the time showed me that it was a quarter past 2.

Beep beep. Beep beep.

Half drunk on sleep I searched for the source of the disturbance. It took me a minute to figure out that it was coming from my monitor. I pulled it towards my face and realized that someone was requesting a video chat. Displayed on my screen was a picture of a boy with messy dark hair and a goofy grin on his face that revealed a cute gap between his teeth.

I pressed the answer button.

"Hiro, when I said first thing tomorrow I didn't mean it literally." I scolded in annoyance but stopped short at the expression on his face.

His eyes were puffy as if he'd been crying and his face held no trace of the smile that was so proudly shown on his profile picture.

"Hiro?" I questioned, concern seeping into my voice, "What's wrong? What happened?"

His face scrunched up as if he was desperately trying to hold back the tears.

"If Callaghan didn't let you in –"

"Tadashi's gone." The genius choked out, taking me by surprise.

It took me a minute to process what he was saying and when I did I stared at him with a mixture of confusion and disbelief.

"What?" I managed out, certain that my brain was playing tricks on me. Delusion was probably one of the side effects of Leukemia. Either that or I still wasn't fully awake.

"Tadashi's dead." Hiro reiterated, squashing any and all thoughts of doubt.

I made a split second decision. If I had to choose between me or my best friend I would choose Hiro.

I would always choose Hiro.

"I'm coming." I said instantly then signed off the chat, only pausing to grab my hoodie that was draped across the visitor's chair.

Twenty minutes later I was standing at the back door of the Lucky Cat Café. I took the spare key that was taped to the back of the dumpster, fumbled with the lock, and then quietly snuck into the Hamada's residence.

It was way too quiet in the house. I slowly crept up the stairs. Every creak of the floor board sounded like a gun shot. I was just about to pass the kitchen when something skittered across the floor.

I froze and nearly yelped aloud when something brushed up against my leg.

Looking down, I realized that it was just the Hamada's pet Calico, and let out a sigh of relief.

"God, Mochi. You nearly gave me a heart attack." I glowered at the cat.

The feline looked up at me, eyes wide with innocence.

"Come on, let's get you back to bed." I whispered.

Scooping up the furball, I silently made my way up the last flight of stairs and into the room that Tadashi and Hiro shared.

"Hiro." I called softly into the darkness while dropping the cat off onto its small cushion.

The lump on the genius's bed shifted at the sound of my voice.

I made my way over to the prodigy and sat down on the side of his bed. Hiro slid up on his mattress until he was in a sitting position with his back against the head board. Through the dim light that was streaming in through the window, I could see that his face was streaked with tears.

My heart hurt seeing him like this.

Slowly, I wrapped my arms around him and lent him my shoulder to cry on. I didn't know how much time had passed when his sniffling finally subsided and he pulled away, wiping at his eyes.

We sat in silence for a moment, letting the surrealness of the situation sink in.

"The building caught on fire." Hiro said finally, "Tadashi wanted to go back for Professor Callaghan, but when he did, the building exploded and he was caught in the blast. I should've stopped him. I should've gone after him. I should've done anything but stand there. This was all my fault."

The boy crumpled in on himself and choked down a sob.

"No," I said firmly, "Hiro listen to me. This was not your fault. Don't even think about blaming yourself. You didn't start the fire. It was an accident. And you couldn't have stopped Tadashi even if you wanted to. You know what he's like. If he can do something to make a situation better, he'll do it, hands down no questions asked. He wouldn't have let you stop him no matter what you did."

"No Shizu, you're wrong." The 14-year-old breathed. "I could've stopped him. If only I tried harder."

"Alright, fine." I responded, "Say, you did stop him. Then what? Tadashi would've lived but, he would've lived with a guilty conscience. He would've never forgiven himself if he knew that he could've saved a life but didn't. You would've broken him Hiro. You would've lost something even more important than your brother. You would've lost his trust and that would've hurt infinitely more."

Hiro let out a shuddering breath. His silence meant that he agreed with what I said. However, that didn't make it hurt any less.

I glanced at the giant clock mounted on the wall. The robot's arms indicated that it was just shy of 4 o'clock. I didn't need light to know that he was exhausted. With the day he'd just had, it was a miracle he hadn't passed out yet.

"I know you don't want to, but I really need you to go to sleep right now." I said quietly, "At the rate this is going, you might really faint from exhaustion."

I was surprised the genius didn't argue with me. He was probably way too drained to come up with a good comeback.

Hiro sank down into his mattress and I was about to get up to leave when his hand reached out and grabbed my wrist.

"Stay with me." He whispered, "Please."

The expression on his face nearly split my heart in two and I knew then that I couldn't refuse him.

"Alright." I agreed.

Hiro shuffled over, making space for me to lie down.

He huddled close to me, needing to feel my warmth; needing to be reassured that everything would be okay.

I gently stroked his hair, relishing in the feel of his soft dark locks.

The boy's breathing evened out, slowly lulling me into my own sweet oblivion.

I didn't know how long it would take for him to feel okay again. I didn't know if he would ever really feel okay again. I didn't know how to tell him about my cancer. I didn't even know if I should tell him with everything that's happened. Yes, there were a lot of things that I didn't know.

However, in that instance, none of it seemed to matter. I was suddenly plagued with this unexplainable thought that everything would be okay. Hiro would find a way to move on with his life and do something even greater than Tadashi or I could've ever imagined.

For some peculiar reason, I knew that Hiro Hamada, this 14-year-old genius, would not only change his life for the better. He would change the entire world.

And with that calming notion, I blissfully sank into the welcoming arms of sleep.

*~*~*~*

It was hot. Too hot.

I opened my eyes to find myself staring at the sloping ceiling of Hiro's bedroom. My forehead was drenched in a sheen of sweat and I felt clammy all over. A quick glance at the clock told me that it was roughly a quarter to 7.

Slowly, I sat up in bed, groaning as my head spun in protest. My forehead felt like it was on fire, and my back was soaked in sweat.

"Shizu?" Hiro called out groggily, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I said quietly, trying desperately to mask the discomfort in my voice, "I'm fine. Go back to sleep."

The genius, who was now wide awake, sat up in concern.

"You're not fine." He protested as he regarded me with those wide brown eyes.

Hiro reached up to touch my forehead with his right hand. I moaned when I felt his cool fingers brush against my overly heated skin.

"Shizu, you're burning up!" The prodigy exclaimed, voice rising with worry.

"S'okay," I mumbled, "It's just a fever. I'll go get some medicine."

Before the boy could argue, I threw off the covers and got out of bed.

However, I didn't make it two steps when I was suddenly hit with a wave of nausea. My entire world tilted and my head spun like a tornado.

I vaguely heard Hiro shouting my name but before I could respond, everything went black.

*~*~*~*

My eyes fluttered open and I found myself squinting up at the bright florescent lights of my hospital room. The strong smell of disinfectants engulfed me, and I felt like gagging.

Before I had a chance to fully process how I got here, the door to my hospital room was violently thrown open and an angry looking Hiro came storming in. His eyes were ablaze with fire and his expression was purely murderous.

"When were you going to tell me? Hmm?" the genius demanded fiercely, his gaze as hard as steel.

A pause. Guess I couldn't avoid him forever.

"So, it seems like boy genius figured out my dark secret," I said somberly, "Who told you? The doctors?"

"It doesn't matter." Hiro snapped, then angrily proclaimed, "Did you really plan on hiding something like this from me?"

Another pause.

"Well, after what happened with Tadashi, I didn't know how or even when to tell you." I admitted slowly.

"Damn it Shizu! You know that's not an excuse!" Hiro yelled, fury seeping from every pore.

"I know." I said quietly as I cast my gaze away from his.

Silence reigned in the room as I bore holes into my white hospital bed sheets.

"How long?" Hiro asked suddenly, causing me to look up.

My maroon eyes clashed with his chocolate brown ones.

"A week." I said finally, "Two if I'm lucky."

He inhaled sharply.

I watched as he struggled to take in this alarming piece of information.

God, he looked absolutely awful. His hair was in knots and he looked exhausted. Dark bags hung under his eyes contrasting with his paler than usual skin. Did he even get enough sleep last night?

Of course not.

I didn't blame him though. I mean, who in their right mind could possibly keep it together when their entire world seemed to be falling apart right before their eyes.

My heart ached for him. He's suffered too many losses already. Two was more than enough. Three? Now, that's just cruel. But four? That's more than inhumane… that's sadistic.

"Hiro," I called softly and he glanced up blankly, "Come here."

He walked over stiffly, feet seeming to move without his conscious control.

When he was close enough, I patted my bed, signalling for him to sit.

He seemed to age 50 years as he sank down onto the soft mattress.

"Hiro…" I began hesitantly. He looked as if he would crack at any minute.

Hearing his name, the genius turned his gaze on to mine and when he did, my heart broke.

He looked utterly destroyed. Whatever strength he had left seemed to drain away in that instant, leaving an empty vulnerable boy in its wake. He had lost his mom, his dad, his older brother, and now he was going to lose his best friend. There was nothing in the world that would make this better for him. Not gummy bears, not Aunt Cass, and not bot fighting.

So, at a loss for words, I did the only thing I could think of.

I gathered him into my arms and buried my nose into his hair. His familiar scent enveloped me, immediately soothing my own unsettled mind.

"It's gonna be okay," I whispered as I held him tightly, "You're gonna be okay."

Hiro clung to me like I was his life line. His ragged breathing and my nonsensical murmurings filled the room.

"I can't lose you too."

*~*~*~*

"I'm sorry I couldn't be at the funeral." I said, as Hiro sat on my bed, tinkering with our robot.

He had finally decided to add some wings to it, but was having trouble adjusting the amount of thrust it produced.

"I told my doctors about it but they said that there was no way they could postpone the radiation date," I continued, "Believe me. I tried to fight them. I looked like a crazy person thrashing and screaming in the hallway. I was lucky nobody called the psych ward."

Hiro cracked a smile.

"Finally!" I exclaimed, causing the boy to look up at the sudden outburst, "Do you know how long it's been since I've seen that adorable smile of yours?"

"Sorry." The genius responded sheepishly, "I'm probably really lousy company right now."

"No, you're alright," I reassured, "Way better than any of the nurses that's for sure. But don't tell them I said that because then they'll stop giving me lollipops."

Hiro chuckled at that.

I cheered, "Woohoo! It must be my lucky day. You even laughed for me."

Hiro stared up at me with a look of pure wonder.

"How do you do that?" he asked in amazement, "How are you so strong?"

That hit a nerve. And just like that, the entire mood of the room changed.

"I'm not strong, Hiro," I said quietly, "To tell you the truth, I'm absolutely terrified. But what can I do about it? Nothing I do will change the fact that I'm going to die."

A disheartening silence hung over us.

"You know something Hiro?" I said suddenly, "If I had wings I would fly us both away from here. I would go somewhere far away; to a time where everything was okay and we didn't have to deal with all these horrible things that are making our lives a living hell."

Hiro scoffed, "They're wings Shizu they don't give you the power to travel back in time."

"But if I go fast enough I might," I argued, "I mean Superman did it."

The genius sighed, "Did you fail physics too? Nothing can travel faster than the speed of light. Therefore it's impossible to travel back in time, smart one."

I pouted, "God, I hate science. It just sucks the fun out of everything."

"But without science, you'd never be able to fly, now will you?" Hiro retorted pointedly.

I stared at him completely dumbstruck.

"Unbelievable." I breathed.

Hiro shrugged, "Hey, what can I say? I'm a genius. We're a pretty unbelievable race."

*~*~*~*

The sound of laboured breathing filled the room along with the steady beeping of the heart monitor.

"Hiro." I breathed as I raised my hand to search for his.

Warm fingers immediately enveloped around my own telling me the boy's location.

"I'm here Shizu." His voiced cracked, "I'm here."

I smiled and gazed at him through half lidded eyes.

"Don't cry." I said softly.

"I'm not." He argued as he wiped furiously at his eyes.

He had to know. I didn't have much time but he had to know.

"You know Hiro, before you came along, my life was in shambles." I started quietly, "When I was nine my father left us and my mom disappeared shortly after. I had no money and the only way I knew how to make a living was by going bot fighting. It was the only thing I was good at; the only thing that assured me that I wasn't a failure or an unwanted child. Remember that day when we first met? You entered the ring and it didn't even take 5 seconds for you to destroy my bot. God, I absolutely resented you back then. I hated you for taking away the one thing that made me just slightly intelligent."

I was suddenly gripped by a violent coughing fit. My lungs felt like they were on fire and I could hardly breathe.

"Don't talk." Hiro cried, trying desperately to get me to save my breath.

But I wouldn't be deterred.

"No," I fought down a cough, "you need to hear this."

No matter how badly my body protested, I needed to get this out.

He needed to know.

"Shortly after, you came up to me and begged me to join the robotics competition with you." I continued, "The rules stated that you needed at least two people to form a group and everyone had to contribute equally to the project. Having anyone else would've undermined your chances so you sought me out. You thought my bot wasn't actually half bad and that with me on your team you just might have a chance at winning. At first, I flat out refused. I mean, why in God's name would I want to help someone who took away the one thing that defined me? But then you showed me that I was wrong; that bot fighting wasn't what made me… me. You showed me that I could be so much more if I just applied myself. You gave me a new angle. Soon, I was building bots not just to destroy others and prove my own superiority, but because I genuinely loved it. My marks in D&T sky rocketed as I strived to know everything there was to know about robotics. You showed me that I wasn't useless or unwanted and that I could do something greater with my life if I just tried hard enough. After we won the competition, I vowed to change my life and do something meaningful with it. You changed me for the better and for that I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Another coughing fit wracked my body and the beeping of my heart monitor accelerated.

"Please Shizu," Hiro begged, "Stop talking. It'll only worsen your situation."

We both knew that there was no saving my situation anyway. So it didn't matter if it got worse or not.

Ignoring him I went on, "I thought what I felt towards you was gratitude. But, as time went on, these feelings didn't go away. Instead, they only deepened and before I knew it, I wanted to be with you all the time. I don't know how it happened, Hiro, but I ended up falling in love with you and I have to admit, I still am; to this very day. Figures it takes death to be beat it out of me."

I chuckled but it came out wrong. It was too watery and I ended up coughing again.

"Shizu." Hiro started but I interrupted him.

"I'm not done." I said, gritting my teeth to stifle another cough, "It doesn't matter now if you feel the same way about me or not. But, I need to tell you this. You are so special, Hiro. So special, and so talented and everything that I wish I was, but I'm not. And it pains me to see you throw away your life like this. I hated seeing you moping around these past couple of days. I'm sure if Tadashi saw the state you were in he'd tell you to go do something productive with that big brain of yours. And he's right. You can do so much more than this. So much more. So, promise me you won't give up. Promise me you'll go to that school you worked so hard to get in. And promise me that if all else fails, you'll find a new angle to work with, okay?"

A single tear drop hit my hand and I realized that he'd started crying.

"You're such an idiot." He breathed.

"I know." I whispered.

Slowly, Hiro leaned down towards my face and captured my mouth with his own. It was an innocent kiss, but one that implied that we were definitely more than friends.

He gently pulled away then leaned his forehead against mine.

"I'll take that as a promise then." I murmured.

The genius nodded in response, not trusting his voice to speak.

I smiled. My eyes began to slip shut as exhaustion over took me. It wouldn't be long now. But before I go, I had to say it. Just once.

His chocolate brown orbs bored into my half lidded maroon ones.

It was now or never.

"I love you, Hiro." I breathed before my vision slowly went dark.

The incessant tone of the flat line sounded noisily in the room. Nurses and doctors scrambled into the chamber yelling frantically. But he couldn't hear a word they were saying.

I love you too.

"Your neurotransmitter levels are rising steadily." Baymax's robotic voiced announced to the genius.

"Which means what?" Hiro asked uncertainly.

"The treatment is working." The inflated marshmallow responded.

Before the 14-year-old could react, Baymax tilted sideways and sailed off the pagoda-like tower of the suspension bridge.

"Oh no." Hiro proclaimed in despair, "No, no, no, no, no! Whaaaa! Baymaaaax!"

However, before the duo could come into contact with the water, the robot's thrusters engaged themselves and they shot towards the skyscrapers of San Fransokyo.

"Yes!" Hiro exclaimed in excitement as they sped across the clear liquid, "Woohoo!"

The two flew across the city, twirling and circling to avoid any obstacles. Hiro felt a rush of exhilaration and as he caught his reflection in the windows of one of the high rise buildings he couldn't help but think of her.

'You were right Shizu. Everything is better if you have wings.'

At that precise moment Baymax cleared the cloud cover. And as the sun shone warmly on the young boy's face, he smiled a genuine smile, because in that instance he knew that he was going to be okay.