Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Mommy!” wailed four-year-old, soon to be five, Miya Hiroaki. “Tell Haru I don’t want party!”

Fujiwara Emiko, his mother, turned around in confusion. She kneeled from where she was preparing her sons’ birthday lunch. “Baby, what’s wrong?” she asked gently, hugging Hiro close to her.

Hiro pouted, his cheeks were an angry scarlet. “Haru wants superhero party, but I want pirate party! W-We always do hero party and it is not fair!” he said, arms wrapped tightly around himself. “B-But you like heroes too so it doesn’t matter,”

He stomped off before Emiko could say anything, intent on trying to convince the younger twin to accept his suggestion of a One Piece themed birthday party once and for all. Hiro loved the anime, it was one of the ways that he and his father, Miya Atsumu, would bond, especially because Hiro was still too small to play volleyball. On Saturday afternoons, the two of them would snuggle in bed and watch episode after episode.

Hiro loved the pirate adventures through the world...and if he wanted to marry Zolo...well. That was the four-year-old’s secret. Daddy said he wanted to marry Zolo first. But that wasn’t fair, Mommy and Daddy were already married!

(“Buddy, it’s fair, I promise. Mommy has someone else she wants to marry, but he’s pretend too,”

“Oh. Who is it, Daddy?”

“Well, he’s not good like Zolo, he’s mean. His name is Todoroki Touya. Mommy calls him Dabi.”

“Oh! Scarface!”

“Uh...yes, I suppose.”

Father and son shared a small giggle together.)

But still. Four-year-old did as Four-year-olds did. If that meant violence against one another, then it meant violence. If it meant peace with one another, so too did it mean peace. Right now, though, it just meant convincing his younger brother by twenty minutes to accept his One Piece party. As long as he got the party that he wanted, Hiro didn’t care how long it took.

He ran up the stairs of their penthouse, excited to see if his brother would agree. Then everyone could have fun! Daddy and Hiro would watch One Piece , and maybe Bokuto-san and Kaito could come and watch One Piece with them too! Everything would be perfect. All Haru had to do was say yes.

“No.” 

That was the blunt answer of Miya Haruhiro, who was rummaging through his closet for the Pro Hero costume his mother had made for Halloween a few months ago. “I don’t know One Piece ,” he offered by way of explanation to his twin. “So then I’ll be stupid cuz I don’t know it, and you know heroes so you not stupid”

“B-But it’s pirates!” protested Hiro. “An-And pirates are super cool!”

“Pirates are super cool,” agreed Haru. “But heroes are cooler! And I know heroes!”

“No they not! You is wrong!”

“No, you is wrong!”

The two boys continued to argue, their volume steadily increasing. Emi came up to see what the ruckus was about and frowned at the two little boys in front of her. “No fighting or neither of you is going to have a birthday party,” she said warningly. “And there will be no One Piece or My Hero Academia marathons after your party either.”

The twins ignored her threat though. They had bigger problems to worry about. Such as if the pirates or the Pros would win in a theoretical fight to the death.

“Deku is betterer than Luffy!” shouted Haru angrily. “He’s smarter!”

“Betterer isn’t a word, dummy!” shot back Hiro. “An-And Luffy is cooler!”

“But Luffy isn’t Pirate King!”

Hiro’s ears turned red. He hated that Haru was right. As far as Hiro and Atsumu had managed to get through the series together, Luffy still wasn’t the Pirate King. But that didn’t matter to Hiro, he just loved One Piece because it was cool. Who cared if Luffy ever became the Pirate King? He sure didn’t. Haru was just being stupid.

“I’m not stupid!” complained Haru. “You is! Deku is betterer than Luffy cuz he’s smarter!”

That ended the discussion and without further comment, Haru stormed out.

Hiro sniffled, unable to hold back the tears anymore. “I HATE YOU, DUMMY!” he shouted before running into his bedroom and slamming the door behind him. He rummaged through his closet, also trying to find something. But instead of searching for a costume, the four-year-old had an entirely different plan in mind.

He smiled to himself. He liked this plan, he liked it very much.

Without much more planning left, he hoisted up his heavy pillow and waddled out of his room. “HARU! I WANNA TALK!” he shouted. 

Haru peeled out from his bedroom, a grumpy expression clear on his face. “What now? You no want hero party,”

“But pirates!” said Hiro pleadingly. “L-Look, see? Pirate treasures!” He dragged the pillowcase over and opened it so Haru could see that it was full of One Piece manga, copies that Hiro had been gifted by his father and uncle. 

Haru pouted. “I don’t want pirates! Heroes are betterer!”

“Betterer isn’t a word, stupid!” argued Hiro. “I said Pirates is better anyways!”

Haru groaned and stomped his foot furiously. “No! No stupid pirates!”

“Fine!” Hiro shouted back. “Stupid heroes!”

“Take back!”

“No, you take back!”

And that started yet another tussle between the two. 

Hiro had his brother finally in a corner. “PIRATES ARE BETTER, STUPID!” he shouted, and then hit Haru with the pillow. But what neither of the twins had realized was that they were now by the stairs that Mommy had said not to go near because she was going to go downstairs and pick up the groceries she had bought.

And what happened when Hiro shoved his brother? Despite being weaker, being older gave Hiro the push he needed to shove Haru down the stairs with an angry, “HMPH! I HATE YOU!”

Haru tumbled down the stairs before landing hard on his side. He started to wail and so did Hiro. They were in so much trouble. 

Haru curled into himself on the floor. His arm was hurting so, so badly. But what hurt the most was Hiro saying that he hated his twin. Haru knew that he was mean sometimes, but Mommy would always ruffle his hair and gently chide him for being a tsundere . But Hiro saying that he hated him only made him cry even harder.

Little feet pounded the steps, but that only made the pounding in Haru’s head increase in pressure. Was this like the time Daddy had gotten a concussion? His head was aching and everything was spinning like Daddyu had said...but his ears weren’t ringing, so it probably wasn’t that. Haru didn’t know though. He just shut his eyes and sobbed.

Soon, Haru felt himself being dragged someplace, but he couldn’t tell where. All he could tell was that his entire body was hurting now, but especially his elbow. Fresh tears poured down his face as he opened his eyes and saw Hiro was the one dragging him.

His twin seemed to be crying too, and he tried to hug Haru, but Haru flinched and Hiro’s face fell. He receded as if he had been burned. “I-I,” stuttered Hiro. He looked so lost seeing his brother being so upset. 

Hiro helped Haru up and put him on their couch before he clambered over to the basket of remote controls and got the one for the TV. “D-Don’t cry,” he said softly. “Pl-Please. Look, I-I put on heroes?”

The TV was currently playing an episode of My Hero Academia , but Haru seemed listless, only gazing into space. His head was still hurting and everything felt like moving through molasses. Haru had tasted some of the molasses  that Mommy had brought from Baba’s house, it was a sickly-sweet and very thick goop. He had absolutely hated it. If this is what his head felt like too...he didn’t want it. He didn’t want it at all.

Next to him, Hiro sadly fisted his shirt. He didn’t know what he could do to make his brother feel better. He was a terrible brother anyways. No wonder Haru didn’t want to watch the heroes. He wanted his dumb brother to apologize...and Hiro couldn’t blame him. He was so, so dumb. So dumb that Haru had gotten hurt because of him , not because of himself. Haru had gotten hurt because of Hiro. What kind of big brother did Hiro think he was?

He wasn’t like Luffy or Deku...he wasn’t nice. He was mean and a bully like Kacchan and Akainu...he was horrible. Haru didn’t even do anything! All he asked for was a superhero party! So Hiro wasn’t a hero or a pirate...he was a villain and a navy officer. He was the worst.

Haru’s crying hadn’t stopped either.

Hiro was starting to get worried...but who could he call? Nobody was there to help him...not Mommy, not Daddy, not Bokuto-san or Akaashi-san, or even Moru-oji. 

He was alone.

Chapter Text

Haru’s head was still hurting him. He continued to cry softly, absolutely hating how his head throbbed and ached with each movement. All he had wanted was a superhero party...he was five now, an-and wasn’t that special enough?

Of course he’d let Hiro have his One Piece party, but...but maybe he was too mean about it. Yeah, he was too mean. He was like Kacchan instead of Deku. Deku would’ve let Hiro have his party, but Haru was a big meanie like Kacchan, so that was why he wasn’t going to get a party.

It’s not like he deserved one anyways. He didn’t even deserve Hiro being nice to him after everything. His brother had hurried from the kitchen with a cold glass of water and some white pills for his elbow, which now that the four-year-old thought about it...it was still hurting. It was hurting a lot.

His sobs began anew.

He was so, so, so bad and he was going to be in so much trouble for this. Hiro got off of the couch and ran off. Haru cried even harder. He deserved to be alone. He didn’t deserve his brother. That was why Hiro left him like everybody else. He really was just like Kacchan. At least the villains had friends and family. Haru had no one now.

Or so he thought.

Hiro appeared a moment later, arms full of the yellow snack tray that Mommy used every afternoon to make the twins their snacks. There was a large glass of ice water with a lemon and a straw, and there were some small pills that Hiro had gotten so that his brother could feel better.

It didn’t help.

It just made Haru feel even worse. He was such a bad boy and Hiro was such a nice one. Despite being barely five, he knew that the old ladies at the park weren’t complimenting him . Never him. He was too loud and too big and too mean and too rough and he was just getting what he deserved. 

That was why Haru tried to refuse the ibuprofen, even though he knew that Mommy left this bottle out because it was safe for him to have two of them if he got hurt. He didn’t deserve to feel better. He didn’t deserve anything good anymore.

“J-Just take it, Haru,” sobbed Hiro. “F-Feel betterer!”

Haru shook his head violently. Bad idea.

His headache was so much worse now. Mommy was going to be mad, he just knew she was going to be mad at him for this. He shouldn’t have fought with Hiro. He should’ve been nice. He should’ve--

“Y-you should’ve had your party!” he said, overcome with sobs. “Th-Then everyone could be happy but n-no one is happy!”

“B-But I not happy!” sobbed Hiro. “C-Cuz I hurted you! I’m a bully!”

And for once in his short life, Miya Haruhiro was left speechless.

Mommy finally came home after that. Hiro had called her, begging for her to get home now so that he could fix his problem and go to time-out. In the meantime, Haru’s headache hadn’t subsided yet. He still felt like he was moving through cotton. But at least his arm was feeling a little better. 

He had finally taken the pills after Hiro had started prodding and poking at his still-aching elbow.

(“N-No!” cried Haru. “D-Don’t touch!”

“B-But I see if it broken…” said Hiro quietly.

“I-It not...no cracks,”

“B-But it can break and no crack…”

“B-But it not , it j-just hurty…”

“What if it is?”

“Trust...i-it not, I promises,”

“Please?”

“Fine.”)

Haru still didn’t think it was broken. If it was broken, the medicine wouldn’t have helped, right? It made him sleepy too, but Mommy had sternly warned him not to sleep as she carried him out to her car. “What color is my car, baby?” she asked, trying to keep him awake.

Haru’s head continued to pound as he looked up.. The four-year-old squinted. “Um. R-Red, Mommy,” he said. Red was his favorite color, that was why her car was red.

“That’s exactly right, baby,” she said gently, unlocking the car door and sliding Haru into the backseat. He sluggishly put on his seatbelt and tried not to fall asleep. If he fell asleep, Mommy would get upset. He couldn’t blame her.

Everything after that was a blur though. 

The hospital was bland and boring. The X-rays were uncomfortable but not intolerable. He could be a big boy and make sure that he had no broken bones after that. A smiling doctor, Dr. Nakayama, gently and expertly put a sling around his arm so that his elbow would stay in place. “That way,” she had explained, “Your arm can best heal and you can play again in a few weeks,”

Haru had smiled at her and politely said thank you. 

But the bigger problem was his headache. 

Dr. Nakayama had told Mommy that it was a concussion and Haru could feel her tense next to him. “Understood,” she said. “I’ll make sure Haru is well taken care of.”

She hadn’t said much after that. 

They left though, and she finally spoke up once they were safely back in the car. 

“Baby, why didn’t you want to compromise? I’m sorry that Hiro hurt you, but you have to understand that he is allowed to feel upset about this,” she said, looking back at her son through the rear view mirror. 

Haru looked away from his mother, deeply embarrassed. “cuz pirates are dumb…” he mumbled. “That’s why.”

“Haru. Really?”

“Th-They are! An-And Daddy doesn’t let me watch the show either! B-But I always tell Daddy and Hiro when we’re gonna watch the heroes and they say no! B-But they don’t share with us!”

It was clear enough that he was still distressed and that was something Emi had been advised to avoid. So she gently explained, "I think that's because Pirates are Daddy and Hiro's thing, and they know you don't like it... Heroes is our thing and they don't wanna intrude,"

Haru sniffled. “S-So it’s not my fault?”

“No baby, no it’s not.”

But back at home, things weren’t so peaceful. 

Atsumu had hurried home as soon as he had gotten Emi’s worried text.

Atsu, I need you to get home. Now.

Emi? What’s up?

Are the boys ok?

Are you ok?

IDK

Hiro called me, he was crying

Said he hurt haru

Ok

I’ll be home soon

Are you with haru?

Yeah, taking him to the hospital

I’ll talk to you soon

Love you

Love you too

He had found his other four-year-old son sobbing by the door about how he didn’t deserve a party. It broke Atsumu’s heart. No four-year-old should ever say that, especially his own four-year-old. Atsumu scooped up Hiro and carried him gently to the sofa. “Hey, hey, bubs. What’s wrong?”

“I-I don’t want a party anymore,” mumbled Hiro. “I-I pushed Haru downstairs and now elbow hurty an-and Mommy taked him to the hospital...an-and it all my fault! I-I don’t deserve a party! I-I’m just like Akainu! I-I’m bad!”

He started to cry again, burying his face in Atsumu’s chest.

This was so tough for Atsumu. He knew that Haru didn’t like One Piece and he was the more assertive of the pair, despite being the younger of the two. That was how they had been doing a superhero themed birthday party for the twins since...well. Since forever, really. Hiro had wanted a One Piece party for once, but now…now that Atsumu had frowned and told him, “Hiro, I know you’re upset. You’re allowed to feel upset. But you are never, ever, allowed to hurt anyone while you’re upset. You could have killed your brother, buddy.”

Hiro had run off to the Time-Out Corner after that, waiting and counting for five minutes before returning to Atsumu, Now he told his father, “I don’t deserve a party.”

Atsumu’s heart broke a little at that statement. 

And when Haru came home a bit later with his arm in a sling, Hiro and Atsumu both broke all over again.

“S-See, Hiro?” said Haru weakly. “Th-This is why I don’t deserve birthday party…”

“No!” said Hiro. “I-I doesn’t! I-I isn’t good enough, you is! 

“HIRO, YOU BIG DUMMY!! You is good enough!!”

“Nuh-uh! I hurt you so I’m the worst-est!”

"Th-That not a word!! So no you isn't!"

"I-It doesn't matter! You can have y-your stupid birthday alone!'

“I don’t wanna!! I gots hurt so I shouldn’t have a party anyways!”

The twins were both crying now, tears flowed freely down their faces."Well I hurt you so I shouldn't have a party!” shouted Hiro “Now go away!! Leave me alone..."

He curled into himself and started for his bedroom. 

Haru angrily stomped his feet. “No!! I’m not going away cuz you should have a party! I was the fighting one!!! You just re...re...fought back!” he said, “But I started it s-so I’m sorry. We can do your party...cuz I don’t think I can fight villains if I’m hurted..but I can be a pirate,”

And Hiro looked at his brother now. He realized that Daddy was right. Haru’s arm was in a sling and if he wasn’t careful...he could have killed Haru. And if he absolutely hated himself for it...well. It was true.

His brother was like Shanks now. Only had one arm that he could use...it made Hiro feel terrible. "I-I don't want a party…” he said weakly. “Just do yours…”

“No! I told you! It’s not fair cuz you hate my party an-and it your party too!”

“I don’t hate your party!” 

“Yes you does!”

“No I don’t!”

Hiro huffed angrily and stomped over to his mother. “"Do Haru's party! An-and leave me alone!"

But instead of making Haru happy, all that it seemed to do was make Haru more upset. “N-No Mommy!” he cried out. “I-It’s not fair! I fought with Hiro...h-he didn’t fight me...s-so I shouldn’t have party...I-I’m not a very good hero.”

Hiro ignored his brother though, instead talking to Atsumu with a frown on his face. 

“Daddy, tell Haru to have his birthday, please,” he said simply. “I don’t want one,”

“I can’t bubs,” said Atsumu gently, hugging Hiro. 

Hiro pouted and looked up at his father. “Why not?”

"No, it's your birthday too, but if you want, you and me can have a birthday marathon of One Piece with Kaito and Bokkun, how's that?" suggested Atsumu. 

“O-Okay,” said Hiro. He liked that idea. Bokuto-san and his son at least liked One Piece too, so he wouldn’t be alone with Daddy for the party. He would have a friend!

"Haru... j-just have your party…” he said, trying to calm down his still-crying twin. “I-I'll be fine...Daddy's gonna watch One Piece with me..."

Instead of calming him down though, it made Haru burst into tears once more and run off to the living room to cry. Hiro ran after him, still feeling absolutely terrible. "H-Haru.. wh-why are you crying..?" he asked, trying to make his twin feel better.

“Cuz you hate me cuz I’m a dummy! I-I want you happy too an-and you not letting me…”

"I-I don't hate you…” said Hiro sadly. “An-and I am happy...Daddy's gonna watch One Piece with me, you don't like One Piece ... s-so just have your party, I'll be fine.”

Hiro sighed, looking at the floor beneath his feet. “I-I don't have any friends who would want to come to my party anyway... s-so have your party..”

“...B-But it’s just Kyouya and you and Kaito...an-and Hima and Yua...and that’s it...” said Haru sadly. So he ran off, shouting, "Mommy!! Hiro still doesn't want a party!!"

Emi turned around from where she was discussing with Atsumu on what to do. “Oh, why not, baby?”

"Cuz he said his party would be stupid and that he doesn't have friends b-but I don't have friends either!!"

“W-well no one likes pirates but me…” Hiro spoke up, “S-so it is stupid...they like heroes more,"

The twins looked at each other. 

“Daddy likes pirates," 

"And Mommy likes superheroes,"

“B-But it still tie! an-and Hiro called my party stupid...s-so maybe heroes are stupid too...I dunno," said Haru.

“No I didn’t!” wailed Hiro.

“Hmph! I still don’t want party!” said Haru.

"Well... What about a dinner party? Just your friends, and your cousins, and us at a restaurant, and we can do presents, so nobody has to have a party."

“Oh,” said the twins at the same time. Smiles broke out on their faces. “I LOVE IT!”

“B-But where?” asked Hiro. “i don't know where…”

“M-Me neither…” said Haru.

Atsumu smiled. “How about Onigiri Miya?”

“YAY!!!!” the twins cheered. “Thank you!”

And maybe...maybe today would be saved. Just like Luffy. Just like Deku.

Fin.