Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Hey Hiro, what’s on your side?”  

The seven year old looked up from his toys, confused.

“What?” 

Tadashi looked closer at the smudge on his brother's ribs. 

“Hey! AUNT CASS!” 

Hiro was a bit nervous. What was going on?” 

“What’s happening?!” Aunt Cass yelled, running up the stairs, brandishing a cookie sheet. “Tadashi?!” 

“Hiro has a soulmate tattoo!” Tadashi chirped, grabbing his little brother and pulling him closer to inspect the name. “And I… can’t read it,” 

“What?!” Hiro yelped. He’s seen soulmate tattoos before, and they were readable. That was the whole point! You read the name and found your match! 

“Let me see… oh,” Aunt Cass whistled, staring at the name. “Well, well uh, that's a ‘y’ at the end,” 

“That's an R,” Tadashai said, squinting. 

“No, no it’s a P,” Aunt Cass muttered. Hiro groaned out loud. 

“I WANNA SEE!” He yelled, pulling out of his family's grasp. 

Tadashi pulled out his phone and snapped a picture, then turned it around to show the seven year old. 

Hiro’s face fell. The handwriting was scribbly and tiny, all mushed together. It looked relatively short, but Hiro couldn’t tell what it said. He could just barely pick out the ‘y’ at the end. The name looked nothing like the blocky writing on Aunt Cass’s knee or the swirling name over Tadashi’s heart. The name was still faint, only just appearing, but Hiro was devastated that it just looked like a smudge. Even the picture he’d seen of his parents matching soulmarks was gorgeous - matching handwriting on their wrists. 

“Hey, it’ll work out,” Tadashi comforted as Hiro sniffed back tears. “They just want you to look a little harder for them,” 

“Here honey, have a cookie,” Aunt Cass said, pulling a chocolate chip cookie out of nowhere and handing it to her nephew. 

Hiro sniffed again, but felt a little better. 

When he was fourteen, Hiro had already graduated from High School. He’d applied and been accepted to SFIT’s prestigious robotics program. He was registered as a super genius. Now he was sixteen years old and could easily solve any problem given to him. All except one: 

Who his soulmate was. 

“Hi-ro!” Honey Lemon chirped from her station, looking up over her beakers. “Did you get the invite?” 

Hiro looked up from his computer. He’d been working on a new coding project, where he wanted to update his old botfighting robot. He’d been so invested in the work that he’d ignored his phone for the past week. 

“What invite?” 

“For the party!” Honey Lemon replied. “We’re all going!” 

“What party?” 

“Come on Hiro-buddy!” Fred yelled from across the room. “You’re SO coming!” 

“You’re coming little man,” Wasabi commented from his station. “Isn’t he, GoGo?” 

The korean woman laughed and popped her gum. 

“You’re totally coming,” 

“Why?” Hiro grumbled, pouting at the older teens. “It’s just gonna be a bunch of frat boys and college girls. I’m sixteen, people. It’s not going to be any fun,” 

“This party is different!” Honey Lemon exclaimed. “This one will have the Advance Program students!” 

The Advance Program was for high schoolers who were particularly gifted in certain areas of study. It had only been created in recent years, but Hiro himself probably would have been enrolled had it existed when he was struggling with life choices. He knew that the programs varied from theatre to math to athletics, but in all honesty, it reminded him of the kids show: ‘ANT Farm’ . 

“They’ll be your age, and imagine how cool you’ll be to them!” Fred crowed, waving his hand in the ‘imagine’ motion. “You might even find Mystery-Y,” 

Mystery-Y was the name the Science Nerds had elected to call Hiro’s soulmate. 

“Fine,” Hiro relented. “I’ll go,” 

So there he was, at 9:00 Friday night, at a party in the dorms, where he knew almost nobody. 

Honey Lemon and Fred had disappeared twenty minutes ago. GoGo had huffed and made a joke that Wasabi had immediately slammed his hands over Hiro’s ears for. Apparently, both of the couples soulmarks had been tingling, which meant something big was due to happen. Wasabi had promised that he and GoGo would not be abandoning Hiro anytime soon. 

It took him ten minutes before his girlfriend dragged him off into one of vacant rooms. 

So, Hiro found himself alone, holding a can of Coca-Cola and leaning awkwardly against a wall. 

“Hi!” A girl suddenly said. Her short red hair bobbed around her chin, and she looked to be around Hiro’s age. “I’m Penny! Are you in the Advance Program?” 

“N-no,” Hiro stuttered. “I’m in the normal robotics program,” 

“But you’re so young!” Penny said. Hiro couldn’t focus. His soulmark tingled painfully. ‘Penny’ fit the number of letters. It seemed about the right length. It had the ‘y’ at the end. Were the others right? Had he just met his soulmate? 

“I graduated early,” Hiro said. “Registered genius. But I can assume you’re in the program?” 

Penny nodded. 

“I’m for theatre! I was in this tv show when I was younger, but it turns out I qualified for this program! It’s so cool!” 

“Really?” Hiro said, feeling himself open up at the possibility of meeting his soulmate. “That’s pretty cool!” 

“My roommate is way cooler though, you should totally meet- Bolt!” 

“Huh?” 

The redhead gestured to a small dog that had started the rub against her legs. 

“He’s my service dog,” She explained. “Keeps me from overextending myself and getting an asthma attack,” 

“Oh, should you be here?” Hiro asked. Penny laughed. 

“Nah, it’s fine. I was in a fire right before I left the TV business, so I developed some breathing issues,” 

The two continued to talk for the rest of the night. Penny got easily distracted and Hiro had to be home by 11:30, but both students seemed to get along super well. Hiro actually felt a bit sad when he had to leave the party. 

“See, it wasn’t that bad!” Fred chirped as he and Honey Lemon drove the younger boy home. Hiro ignored the badly hidden lipstick stains on Fred’s collar and neck. 

“I think I might have met Mystery-Y,” Hiro mumbled, thinking about Penny. Honey Lemon perked up and clapped her hands. 

“Hi-ro! That's great!” The blonde chirped. “What’s her name?” 

“Penny,” Hiro said. 

“Awesome man!” Fred cheered, pulling into the spot in front of the Lucky Cat Cafe and letting Hiro out. “Oh, and say hi to Aunt Cass for us!” 

“Will do!” 

Hiro and Penny hung out a lot after the party. They went out for ice cream, to the dog park with Bolt, or to a few science conventions that rolled into town. Penny always seemed to have something to talk about, whether it be a new series on Netflix or her roommate. Hiro wanted to ask if they were soulmates, but Penny never made any revelation that she thought the same. He was also just enjoying having a friend who wasn’t a science geek. Besides, Penny turned out to be super fun anyways. 

“So… soulmates?” He asked finally. “Your opinions?” 

Penny sighed.

“I actually… don’t have one?” She admitted. Hiro was confused. 

“But I thought you were mine?” He stammered finally. Penny sighed. 

“Why didn’t you say something before?” 

“I… actually can’t read the name,” He muttered. “Your name was close enough, but the handwriting is so bad I actually don’t know the name,” 

“You can’t read the word ‘Penelope’ on your own body?” Penny asked. 

“Here,” Hiro muttered, pulled his shirt up so his friend could see. The redhead examined the name and squinted. 

“Well that's definitely not my name,” Penny muttered after a while. “That’s rough buddy,” 

Hiro rolled his eyes at the reference. 

“Thanks Pen,” 

“Don’t worry! We’ll find them sometime!” Penny cheered, before linking her arm with Hiro’s and dragging him down the street. 

A month later, Hiro once again found himself at a mixed party. This time, he was not having a good time. Penny wasn’t in town that weekend and the older kids had once again left him. 

“Sorry, excuse me!” A girl muttered, shoving past Hiro. He tried to move out of her way, but tripped and fell onto the ground. Hiro rubbed her shoulder where he’d landed, groaning a bit in pain. His soulmark tingled painfully. 

“Oh snap are you okay?!” Another girl cried, bending over to check on the boy. She only looked like she was a few years older than he was. Her long blonde hair tumbled over her shoulders and she wore a pink and purple patterned shirt with jean shorts and patterned tights. 

“Uh, yeah,” Hiro mumbled, wondering why his soulmark had started to buzz. 

“Hey Punzie!” 

“Punzy?” Hiro muttered. His brain put the pieces together. ‘Punzy’, as weird as the name was, fit his soulmark. Which had just activated as he met the blonde. He’d been unlucky with Penny, but maybe this ‘Punzy’ was his soulmate? 

The blonde stood up and turned to wave a small group of people on the other side of the room. Of the three people waiting for her, only one seemed to be paying attention. The redhead girl and brunet boy were already making out against the counter, but a white haired boy smiled brightly at Hiro and Punzy. 

“Want to meet my friends?” Punzy asked, and without waiting for an answer, grabbed the teen by the wrist and dragged him over. “Jack! Meri! HIC!”

The couple kissing broke away, seemingly yanked back into reality. The white haired boy - Jack - just smirked and waved at the newcomers. 

“This is… I actually don’t know but-I-knocked-him-down-and-wanted-to-make-it-up-to-him,” Punzy rambled. 

“Hiro,” Hiro filled in, still only really staring at Punzy. “Hiro Hamada,” 

“Like the Hamada building?” The redhead suddenly asked. 

“Named after my brother,” Hiro replied. The redhead nodded. 

“Come on Hic, let’s go find drinks,” 

She dragged the brunet boy off with her, and he smiled sheepishly at the others before disappearing into the crowd. 

“Punz likes to bring over strays,” Jack mentioned as the blonde bounced a little to the music. “She’s always been like that, but thats one of the reasons I love her so much,” 

“I-is she your soulmate?” Hiro asked, dreading the answer. The older boy nodded and Hiro’s heart dropped. “I was kinda hoping she might have been mine, but I probably couldn’t handle her,” 

“You got a ‘Rapunzel’ on your body too?” Jack laughed. “Man, we should form a club,” 

Hiro felt himself loosen up. The older boy wasn’t mean, and it was obvious it meant well. He and Tadashi would have probably been great friends. 

“I think that ‘Punzy’ fits better,” Hiro admitted. “I can’t read my soulmark,” 

Jack hissed. 

“That’s rough buddy,” 

Why did people keep making that joke?

“I always felt bad for my soulmate, with a name like Rapunzel,” Jack said, watching his girlfriend twirl. “But it turns out she didn’t even know I existed ,” 

Hiro looked confused and Jack laughed a bit. 

“Her soulmark is on the middle of her back, so she’s never been able to see it. Her mother didn’t like soulmates after she got her heart broken, so Punzie never learned about them until we met,” 

“That sounds hard,” 

“It was for a bit, but it's soulmates. We figured it out. So will you,” Jack finished. “You’ll find your mystery scribble,” 

“Thanks,” Hiro whispered. 

The cycle continued. Hiro went to school, worked on his robotics projects, and went home to help Aunt Cass in the cafe. He met up with the others on the weekends, and still managed to find time to go out and explore the city with Penny and Bolt. He even saw Jack, Rapunzel and the others around campus. 

Hiro still hadn’t found his soulmate, and had started to come to terms with it. He knew he didn’t need to find a soulmate to live his life to the fullest, and devoted more time to Baymax’s upgrades and spending time with his friends. 

He still wasn’t a fan of the parties though. Honey Lemon and Fred went to all they could, usually dancing or sneaking off into closets. It was in their soulmate bond to get a rush, Hiro figured. He’d been debating on starting a new research project about the bonds. They’d become a lot more interesting after his two failures. Hiro watched his friends and how they reacted with their soulbonds. GoGo and Wasabi both went to dojos, using their extra energy and pent up emotion to further kicks and punches. They fought each other a lot, and every fight was new and exciting to them. Aunt Cass’s soulmate was platonic, but the two had bonded over baking classes in culinary school. Hiro hoped that his soulmate would share his introvertedness and dislike of the parties. 

Yes, Hiro was not a fan of the parties. But here he was, at another one. 

He sipped from his coke can, leaning against the open window and letting the breeze ruffle his hair. Hiro never danced. He much preferred to watch the college kids get way to drunk and dance like they were kids. 

“Want a cookie?” A voice said, interrupted his thoughts. Hiro looked over to his left, where a girl about his age had settled herself on the thick windowsill. She held two store bought frosted cookies in her hands, where someone had stuffed gummy bears into the icing. 

“Sure,” Hiro muttered, taking one. “These aren’t laced with anything, are they?” 

The girl laughed. 

“An inordinate amount of sugar,” She admitted. “But I’m exhausted from practice and need the sugar to stay awake,” 

“Practice?” 

“Hockey,” The girl said, brushing a strand of her blonde hair out of her eyes. Her bangs swept over to the left side of her head, while there were a few light blue streaks among the blonde strands. Hiro noticed she was wearing a rainbow striped shirt under a loose light blue tank top that tucked into her jeans. “Been playing all my life,” 

“Cool,” Hiro mustered, not really knowing what else to say. The girl shrugged and continued to munch on her cookie. 

“Hey Rainbow!” A voice from the crowd yelled, waving frantically. “HI!”

The blonde rolled her eyes and waved back. 

“Hi Wilbur,” She called. “Go dance with your girlfriend!” 

‘Wilbur’ laughed and let himself disappear into the crowd with another dark haired girl. 

“So… Rainbow?” Hiro asked. The girl almost choked on her cookie. 

“No, no, no that a nickname!” She laughed. “I have… synesthesia, so I see colors with sounds?” 

“Woah!” Hiro cried. “I’ve never actually met a synesthesiac before,” 

“It’s not as cool as people think it is,” ‘Rainbow’ shrugged. “See, sounds make these different colors pop up, sometimes if I think too hard I smell stuff that isn’t there. All the people in my dorm started calling me ‘Rainbow’ because of it,” 

“So your name isn’t rainbow?” 

The girl laughed and shook her head. Hiro couldn’t help but admire how her hair shimmered in the light. 

“No, no, no! My name is Riley. Riley Anderson,” 

“Hiro Hamada,” He responded as his soulmark suddenly burned. Riley blinked, and in a flash, pulled off her tank top. Hiro blinked confusedly. Riley tossed her tank onto a nearby chair and pulled the side of her undershirt up. She pointed to the mark on her ribs. Hiro looked at it and gasped. 

In a familiar blocky and concise handwriting, small and loopy, was Hiro’s name. In his handwriting. Hiro blinked and looked up into Riley’s eyes. 

“Your handwriting sucks .”  He said, showing her his own soulmark. Riley cringed a bit. 

“Yeah, sorry about that,” She muttered, tracing her fingers over her name. “I never really bothered with it, but it is pretty bad,” 

“I couldn’t read it,” Hiro insisted. “Nobody could read it!” 

Riley groaned. Hiro only laughed. The two teens fixed their shirts and went back to their conversation. Hiro delved into his bag for his bag of gummy bears, which Riley happily munched on. The two ended up ducking out of the party early, where Riley showed him how to jimmy the roof access door and get on top of the building. They watched the San Fransokyo sky glimmer with stars and lights, talking quietly as they took in the views. 

Hiro sighed, enjoying the tingles that ran through his skin every time Riley spoke. 

6 weeks later: 

Hiro laughed, trying not to snort his milkshake. 

“Okay, then what color is Fred?” He asked. Riley scrunched up her face for a second. 

“Teal,” She said finally. “Bright electric teal,” 

“And Honey is yellow?” 

“Bright, bright yellow!” Riley laughed. “And Gogo is purple and Wasabi is lime green,” 

“That's some crazy colors,” Hiro laughed. “I’m red?” 

“Red,” Riley nodded, sipping her milkshake. “Bright, happy red.” 

Hiro smiled and reached over to ruffle Riley’s hair. The blonde laughed out loud. The moment was interrupted by the melody coming from her phone, and Riley reached over to stop the alarm. 

“Practice time,” Riley muttered, standing up and shouldering her bag. “See you later?” 

“Sure!” Hiro said. “Come by Aunt Cass’s later?” 

“Okay!” Riley said, making her way down the street. She turned around and waved as she walked, jumping up to make sure Hiro could still see her. 

Hiro grinned and finished his milkshake. His soulmark buzzed, but it didn’t bother him. 

Tadashi would have been proud.