Chapter Text
When Manuel looked back on it, he realised that perhaps the reason he has been taken so offguard was that despite the idiocy of Thomas’ shenanigans, they were usually limited to an acceptable level of idiocy – all his pranks, though impulsive, were never rash, per se, always harmless and the effects were always temporary. The worst he had done was set Mario’s alarm for 3 am at full volume, which wasn’t the worst to do, but it had ensued in a very exhausted and angry Mario Götze to come storming into their room and initiate a shouting match with Thomas which woke the entire building up.
(It’d turn out alright, though, because Thomas hated disputes – the first thing he’d done next morning on the bus was go up to Mario and apologise with absolute sincerity.
Mario, bless his soul, tried to apologise too, and the two spent half an hour trying to out-apologise each other.)
So to say that Manu was severely underprepared for Thomas’ call was an understatement.
Honestly, all he’d been doing was minding his own business on a quiet Saturday night, with the TV on at a low volume and in the living room as he cooked some pasta for himself, humming along to the songs in the ad breaks, passively content by a quiet weekend to himself.
He’d barely seated himself in front of the TV with his plate when his phone rang. He had more than half a mind to let it ring, but he had realised that nobody would be calling him at eight in the evening if it wasn’t unimportant.
Manuel reached for his phone and sighed exasperatedly when he saw the name on the display.
Thomas
“Hello?” He said, lazily, flicking through the TV channels with his free hand.
“Ducky!” Thomas said cheerfully. “How’s my favourite person?”
That. That made Manuel sit up.
“What have you done now?”
“Nothing!” Thomas said, a little too innocently to be true. “I can’t call to see how my best friend is doing on a Saturday evening?”
“Thomas-“, Manuel started, but Thomas just simply talked over him.
“I mean, I just wanted to check how you’re doing, we met ages ago, you kn-“
“Thomas, we met for lunch today”, Manu deadpanned, already setting down his untouched pasta and reaching for his coat with a sigh of resignation that only Thomas Müller’s friends would master.
“What have you done?”
“I just-" for once, Thomas seemed at a loss of words.
“You what?” Manuel said, alarmed now as he grabbed his keys.
“I- adopted a baby.”
Manuel stopped dead in his tracks.
What.
Even.
“You- what?” Manuel said weakly, trying to process the information unsuccessfully.
“I adopted a baby," Thomas repeated, unusually quiet but firm, like he was trying to convince Manuel of something.
“It’s a baby boy- his name is Joshua. He’s the sweetest thing in the world, Manu. You should see him –“
“Where is he now?” Manuel asked, his concern for the wellbeing of the infant slowly surfacing through the shock of the news.
“Asleep, on my shoulder,” Thomas said, his voice soft as to not wake the baby “We’re fine, Ducky. I don’t need anything right away. I just wanted to tell you.”
“Who else knows?”
Thomas’ reply surprised him. “Just you."
Manuel heard a quiet sniffle on the other end of the line and immediately, Thomas began to sing a quiet Bavarian lullaby to the restless child (he wasn’t a bad singer, really, when he tried).
Manu stayed like that for a good minute, frozen in his doorway, staring at the dark sky as he listened to Thomas whisper comforting nonsense into Joshua’s ear.
Then, when Joshua quietened down, Thomas asked, “Ducky?”
“Yes?” Manuel said, dazed but recovering.
“Nothing.”
“Can I come to see him?” He asked impulsively.
“Yeah!” Thomas replied brightly. "Come now, it'll be his bedtime in an hour."
“Alright, I’m on my way,” Manuel said, shifting gears into autopilot as he locked the door behind him.
* * *
The numbness remained throughout the drive to Thomas’ house, though his hands remained steady on the wheel. It was only when he parked his car and saw Thomas waiting for him in the doorway with a tiny bundle of blankets that it really hit him – this wasn’t a prank.
Thomas hadn’t been joking. He really adopted a baby boy.
Well.
Fuck.
“Hey, Ducky!” Thomas whisper-shouted, beaming at him brightly.
“He’s going to catch a cold!” Manuel hissed, taking the steps two at the same time, grabbing Thomas by the shoulders and turning him around to gently shove him instead.
“Oops," Thomas said, eyes wide as he watched Manuel close the door behind him. “Sorry –“
But Manuel wasn’t listening – he was gently uncovering the blankets from around the baby and looking at him for the first time.
Surprisingly, the baby was awake but completely calm in Thomas’ arms. A pair of big blue eyes set in rosy skin starred up to Manuel, who stared right back, lost for words. A few tufts of blond hair were already visible on its head, and the entire thing has him an image of a baby cherub.
“What do you think?” Thomas asked happily, and the baby grinned at his voice.
“He’s adorable," Manuel said, truthfully, and he could feel Thomas’ happiness even though he wasn’t looking at him. “Joshua, right?”
As if recognizing his name, Joshua gurgled happily and reached for Manu with both hands in the air, barely able to close his tiny fingers around Manu’s offered index finger.
“You’re a cutie, aren’t you?” Manu said, putting his face close to his, Joshua giggled, clutching another finger with his free hand.
Manuel felt himself smile.
He looked up at Thomas, who was making faces at Joshua, ane the kid stared back adoringly, kicking his tiny legs and nearly breaking Manuel’s jaw.
But then he started to cry. Both Thomas and Manuel stared, dumbfounded. Babies.
“Thomas, when did he last eat?” Manuel said loudly over Joshua's screaming, because this kid had the potential of an opera singer.
“I don’t know?” Thomas said. “We only came home an hour ago.”
Manu sighed exasperatedly. “Do you have milk?”
“Sure, in the fridge.”
“Okay, come up with me.”
Thomas propped Joshua up on his shoulders (“wheeeee!”) and let him play with his curls as he followed Manuel into the kitchen. Both infant and father (father?) watched interestedly as Manuel heard the milk mechanically.
“Do you have a baby bottle?”
“Uh. A baby bottle?” Thomas said dumbly, wincing as Joshua tugged his hair enthusiastically.
Manuel needed to have a few words with whoever had allowed Thomas to become a parent.
“We’re going shopping tomorrow," he sighed, fishing out a spoon from the drawer and washing it before sleeping the milk up.
“Here, bring him down."
Thomas held Joshua firmly while Manuel tried to coax him into opening his mouth. Joshua closed his mouth firmly and looked away with style.
Manuel looked up at Thomas, who was trying not to laugh.
“Here, hold him”, he said, setting the baby gently into the crook of Manuel’s free arm. “Hey, Jo, look!”
And he began to run around the kitchen with his arms stretched out, making airplane gestures and engine noises.
"VROOM!" Thomas yelled, and Joshua watched, enraptured, with his mouth open, allowing Manuel quickly tipped the milk into his mouth.
Joshua swallowed, surprised, and them hiccupped, grinning and reaching for the spoon.
“There we go," Thomas grunner, looking pleased with himself. “Look, he wants more.”
Manuel rolled his eyes.