Chapter Text
One might think that spending the better part of his life in foster care would teach Techno to be able to get used to change easier. But since Tommy's appearance in his life, which has been a big change in and of itself, things just kept moving in unexpected directions.
Most, of course, somehow involving or being related to one Theseus Blade.
The first big change happens a few months after their initial nightly visit to Phil's house.
Techno and Phil sit on the couch in the latter's living room, drinking tea and chatting, while Tommy lays on his stomach on the carpet, playing with his stuffed toys. The adults have been talking for a while, when the subject of living space came up.
"My lease will end soon, so I gotta start looking into getting a new place," Techno tells Phil, still keeping his attention on his son and missing the shocked expression on the older's face in the process.
"Really?" Phil asks with an indescribable tone.
"Yeah, I've been living there for more than a year. It's probably a good chance to find an apartment with thicker walls, since Tommy seems to get close to teething age," Techno says, just as Tommy starts trying to chew on a chicken plush, which isn't very effective on the account of him having no teeth yet. Techno can't help smiling at his son's antics, which Tommy notices and returns, happy exclaims of "da!" falling out of his mouth.
"You can move in with us," Phil says out of nowhere. Techno's gaze snaps to him, and he realizes that the older is completely serious.
"Phil," Techno says in a warning tone, but it seems that the other either didn't hear it or decided to ignore it completely.
"I mean it's not like it'll change much. The spare room is practically yours already, we've got a crib there, which you could swap out with the one you have at your place, and we live in a house, so you don't have to worry about Tommy waking the neighbors up," Phil tells him, moving through all protests that Techno wants to make like a damn train. He has a triumphant smile on his face, like he knows that he's won. The younger only manages to open and close his mouth with no sound escaping him. The reasons are sound, like they always are with Phil, but-
"I don't want to intrude," Techno finally manages to find his voice. The smile on the blond's face dims, but doesn't leave his face, as he softly shakes his head.
"You and your excuses again," he starts before making eyes contact with the other. The look in Phil's eyes makes too many emotions rise up in Techno's chest, and he desperately wants to look away. But he doesn't. "You won't be intruding, not at all. It's actually nice to have other people in the house, when Kristin is gone for work, especially now that Wilbur is away for uni."
Techno doesn't look entirely convinced, but before he can say anything else, the front door opens. Tommy takes his attention from his attempt at eating the chicken and starts to shuffle towards the source of sound. Before he's able to get far, Kristin rounds the corner and easily picks the infant up.
"Hey there, little guy," she says to Tommy as he starts giggling and swinging his legs from his position on Kristin's hip. She then turns to Techno with the same smile that she's directed at the boy, "nice to see you too, Tech."
"Hi, Kristin," he replies. It's another unusual thing, both that they insist that he at least calls them by their names and that he's now got a nickname. Tommy continues talking nonsensically, drawing Techno's attention to him, which makes him miss the way Phil turns to his wife with a determined expression.
"Kristin, do you think Techno is intruding on us?"
"What? No, of course not," she says, her face falling as she looks between Phil and Techno. "Techno, why would you think that?" Kristin asks, and her tone makes Techno feel like he's being scolded by a parent, even if he never really had that kind of relationship in his life. Among other strange behaviors of the older two, he doesn't get why he feels as if they are trying to be his parents. He shakes those thoughts away. Better not to get any ideas, lest Kristin and Phil get weirded out by him or something.
"I just- I mean- It's nothing serious really," he tries to reassure them both, scratching at the back of his neck in a very awkward manner. The couple doesn't look like they believe him, and now he feels like a kid getting scolded even more. A few silent moments pass, where no one says anything, even Tommy.
Kristin sighs before speaking, "Techno, we aren't bothered with your presence at all. You and Tommy are great company, and I always enjoy seeing you two around," she hands Tommy back to his dad, who takes the kid and places him on his lap. Techno raises his gaze to Kristin and accidentally makes eye contact with her. She smiles at him so gently, and he just knows that he doesn't deserve their kindness.
"See, we both like having you around. So, if you have nowhere to move to, you can easily stay with us," Phil pipes in, smiling as well. He reaches other and places a hand on the younger man's shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly. Techno looks between the other adults before settling his gaze on his son. Tommy has this somehow thoughtful look on his face as if he's also thinking this decision over. In the end, he eloquently says "ba!", looking straight into his father's eyes.
Techno smiles softly at that, sighing and letting some tension drain from his posture. "Alright, you win," he informs Phil and Kristin, who, upon him raising his head to see their reactions, look ecstatic, as if those three little words were the best thing they've heard in a while.
---
The move went by smoothly. It's not like Techno had a lot of things, and all the furniture in his old apartment wasn't bought by him, so it only took two bags to pack all his stuff. Tommy, on the other hand, had a bunch of things that needed to be taken with them.
Phil initially proposed that the crib can be moved in its assembled form, but with its size, it wasn't able to fit into the car. So, he and Techno spent an hour disassembling the thing and packing up the pieces to take it home. ... strange, when did Techno start thinking of the Craft house as his home?
In the end, everything needed was relocated to Techno and Tommy's new room. Or, well, the ex-'quest room' of the house, which still required a bunch of decorating to feel truly personal. The walls weren't painted, since the two of them would need to sleep in the living room in order to pull that off. But at least Techno got a pretty nice store-bought painting to hang above his bed.
Almost as soon as the move was complete, Tommy entered the teething stage, which kept all of them up at night. Techno tried to deal with this on his own, but Phil and Kristin were weirdly insistent on losing hours of sleep to help out. Techno still didn't understand that, but he could only be grateful for them.
In general, Tommy was developing pretty greatly. He was already standing up with the help of the furniture, which typically meant that he's about to takes his first steps soon. If Techno told the younger him, who had just graduated high school, that in around two years, he would be excited about a baby's development, he wouldn't be able to believe himself. But as it was, he found himself keeping an even more vigilant eye on his son, not wanting to miss such a crucial moment.
Another new thing in their life was Wilbur. Techno distantly remembers that Phil would mention having a kid back when they were still a teacher and student, but he and Wilbur never met prior to Techno crashing into the younger's parents' life. Now they would video chat at least every other week. According to Wilbur's words, he wants to get to know his new brother and nephew. Techno... isn't sure how to feel about that.
What's more is Wilbur is coming to visit a few days before Techno's birthday without the latter's knowledge. If he stays for a month, like he's planned the surprise to go, he'll also be there for Tommy's first birthday. A pretty momentous event.
But as it goes, they meet a bit before that.
Techno wakes up as he always does nowadays, with a hand on the side of Tommy's crib. Blinking the remains of the sleep away, he pushes himself up to look into the crib to see Tommy still soundly asleep. With a fond smile Techno reaches a hand to put it on his son's chest, moving it in a circular motion.
"Hey, Theseus, it's time to wake up," he says softly, careful not to startle the little kid. Tommy stirs slightly, scrunching up his face in displeasure. Techno hums in solidarity. "Yeah, I know. But we've got to start with our day. You must be hungry."
Tommy yawns, the pacifier almost falling out of his mouth, but opens his eyes, blearily looking around before his gaze sets on his dad. Just as he does that, he starts reaching out his little hands in clear request to be picked up, which Techno obliges. Tommy's head falls on the older's shoulder, while he moves to put the infant on the changing table, which was placed in their room. In reality it's just a dresser with a changing mat on the top with all necessary things being kept in the drawers. But it does its job in making it easy for Techno to quickly change the kid.
With a newly changed baby, Techno exits the bedroom and goes into the bathroom. Tommy wakes up a bit more in the time it takes his dad to get his baby toothbrush. Maybe he's not awake enough for this, but the kid lets his teeth get brushed without too much squirming, which the pacifier had to be taken away for and put onto Techno's thumb.
Without any of his toys, Tommy starts playing with the ends of Techno's shoulder-length hair, while the older cleans his own teeth. After quickly brushing his hair, careful not to hit tiny hands trying to grasp at it, he goes out of the door and towards their next destination.
Kristin is already in the kitchen, sipping on her coffee. When the father-son duo enters the room, she sends them a smile and places her cup on the table.
"Aren't you up a bit early?" Techno asks, while he puts Tommy into his highchair. As far as he's aware, Kristin doesn't have work on the weekends and would usually sleep in, so her being up at six in the morning is a bit strange, to say the least.
The woman just shrugs at the question. "Just felt like starting the day early," she replies easily, taking another sip.
"Can't argue with that," Techno says, while putting mashed potatoes into a baby bowl before placing it into the microwave to reheat. While it does that, he quickly makes himself a toast sandwich. He takes the warm mashed potatoes out, putting the little spoon in there, and fills Tommy's bottle with water before placing them on the infant's tray. As soon as it's within reach, Tommy grabs the spoon and starts eating the mash with varying degrees of success.
Techno pours himself a glass of juice and sists down to eat his sandwich. But before he's able to take a single bite, he hears the front door opening. Immediately he's on full alert, looking between the direction of the where the noise came from and Kristin, who doesn't seem at all bothered. She continues to sip her coffee, while the sounds continue to grow louder and seem to get closer.
With each step that the mystery person takes, Techno grows more confused. Before long a head of curly brown hair pops into the kitchen and it's... just Wilbur. Techno's shoulders loose most of their tension, but the confusion doesn't leave entirely.
"Hello, family, I'm home," Wilbur says before scanning the table. "Where is dad?" He asks, looking at his mom, who seems unbothered by everything that is happening.
"Still asleep, wanna wake him up?"
"Nah, I'd rather sit with you guys." Wilbur pulls out a chair and sits down, setting a duffel bag that he was holding onto the ground beside him. Then he turns to Techno. "Hi," he greets with a smile, a genuine one at that.
"Hello," Techno greets back, albeit more awkwardly. His food still sits untouched on his plate, and, looking at it, he has a thought that Wilbur might be hungry. "Want me to make you something?" Techno asks, gesturing over his shoulder to the fridge.
"No, I'm good. But thank you for the offer," he refuses politely, and then the kitchen falls into silence again. But before Techno or maybe even Kristin can say something, Wilbur's eyes set on Tommy. "So that's my nephew?"
Techno looks over at his son, who in turn is rapidly switching his attention between a stranger in their home, his dad and his food. Only the third of the mash got eaten, while another got all over the tray and another is still in the bowl.
"Can I hold him?" Wilbur asks, looking at Techno, and the older has to think for a bit, turning the idea over in his head.
"I'm not sure. Usually only me, Phil or Kristin hold him apart from the occasional doctor. I don't really know how he'll react to someone new picking him up," he settles on in the end. "Maybe he won't mind if I first introduce you and then pass him from my arms. But maybe I can have breakfast first?" He lifts the poor forgotten sandwich up.
"Oh, yeah, sure, take your time," Wilbur hurries to say, a bit nervous for the first time since the two first spoke, and turns to converse with Kristin. While they discuss everything that has happened in Wilbur's absence, Techno is able to finish his meal.
When he's done, he takes his plate and Tommy's mostly empty bowl to the sink, while Kristin and Wilbur migrate to the living room. After wiping Tommy's face clean of any food, he picks his kid up and follows into the living room. Kristin took an armchair, while Wilbur sat on the couch. They fall quiet as soon as Techno walks through the doorway, and Wilbur watches the father-son duo like a hawk. Techno sits down on the other side of the couch and places Tommy between him and the younger brunet, still keeping an arm around the infant.
"Look, Theseus," he starts, directing Tommy's attention, "this is, uh... uncle Wilbur. You remember the one we saw on the phone?"
Tommy looks between Techno and Wilbur with wide eyes, probably trying to understand how the guy he saw on a little screen suddenly got so big. He reaches out a hesitant hand and Wilbur gently takes it.
Tommy looks at their joined hands and smiles up at Wilbur, who seems close to tears at the gesture. Kristin watches the interaction with warmth in her eyes, and Techno is just glad the two seem to get along.
---
Techno's birthday was celebrated a few days after. And it actually got celebrated, unlike all the foster homes he's been in, where adults didn't even know when his birthday is or just didn't care.
The family decided that all of them should go out to somewhere nice for the occasion. Techno tried to say that the day is not that important, but the others didn't seem to like that. In the end, they spent the afternoon in a nice restaurant and the evening in their living room. They were supposed to be watching a movie, but instead it turned in them chatting while the film droned on in the background.
Two weeks later Tommy's birthday came along.
Kristin brings the baby-safe smash cake she ordered from the new bakery nearby into the kitchen. Removing the packaging with the "Nihachu Bakery" logo on it reveals a small cake, meant for the birthday boy. The cupcakes, which are meant for the adults, get carried in by Wilbur.
While Tommy naps in his crib, Techno and Phil put up the decorations in the living room. The balloons have to be tied to the furniture, so they don't float to the ceiling. And, while Techno tries to figure out how to tie those balloons to the couch, Phil struggles putting the banner onto said ceiling. After a lot of tape, he manages to stick the letters onto the flat surface and climbs down the ladder. The balloons end up being tied mostly to the coffee table, which, thankfully, doesn't begin floating.
Wilbur and Kristin walk into the room. "Pretty nice," she says, looking around and holding her gaze on the banner, which is hanging on by Phil's hopes and dreams, a bit longer. "So, is it showtime yet?"
Techno checks the watch, which was Wilbur's gift for him. "Yeah, I'll go get Tommy," with that he disappears into their shared room. While he's gone, everyone just sits on the couch in anticipation.
Techno reappears with a drowsy Tommy in his arms. The kid buries his face in his dad's shirt, trying to hide from the world there, which doesn't seem to be a very successful endeavor. Wilbur and Phil coo at the sight, while Kristin just chuckles good-naturedly. The noise catches Tommy's attention, and he turns to look around, smiling widely, when his eyes land on each member of his family. Everyone's hearts melt at that.
Tommy gets placed into his high chair, which was moved to the living room specifically for today. Already having been accustomed to expect food, when in the chair, the boy starts lightly slapping the tray with his palms. Techno leaves to get the cake, being followed by Wilbur for help with getting other food. While their kids are gone, Phil and Kristin focus on Tommy, putting a little party hat on him and entertaining the birthday boy.
After the cake is put onto the tray, Wilbur lights the candle. Tommy looks at it for a few moments, before he tries reaching for the fire, prompting Techno to blow out the candle from over his son's shoulder to prevent injury. The kid is confused for a bit before his mind gets switched to adults around him clapping. Tommy claps along with them and giggles, happy with the attention.
Adults talk among themselves, while also engaging with the little boy as he opens his presents, which mainly consist of new toys. While Tommy inspects his new stuffed sheep, Kristin and Wilbur get up to wash some berries for everyone. Techno continues looking at his son, but Phil's gaze trails to him instead.
"You know, you've done really well with him," Phil says casually. Techno looks over at him confused, which earns him a smirk from the older.
"What do you mean?" he asks, just to be sure of what Phil's thinking.
"Well, you've been a great parent so far, especially for being so young and on your own at first," he compliments, motioning to the now toddler. Tommy tries to chew on the sheep stuffie, but quickly realizes that the taste is not it and sticks his tongue out. Techno fondly watches the action before averting his gaze and looking down at his folded hands.
"I could've been better," he says quietly. Phil's face immediately falls and he wants to argue, but something stops him.
Out of the corner of his eye, Techno sees how Tommy has pushed himself to stand. The kid turns and the two of them eye contact, which prompts the toddler to take a step forward. The older slides off the armchair into the kneeling position on the floor, arms outstretched towards his baby. Tommy continues walking towards his dad with a determined pout on his face, before finally reaching his goal and falling into Techno's arms. He brings his kid closer to him, while the little one giggles happily, even Phil chuckles, something between excitement and disbelief.
Techno holds Tommy to his chest tightly, but still very careful not to accidentally hurt him, hiding his face in the golden curls. When Wilbur and Kristin come back, they're obviously bummed about missing something so important, but still happy for Tommy and his achievement. Techno still can't bring himself to let go of his baby.