Shelia Sternwell and her robot partner XJ5 had arrived at the space station for a short meeting with Larry and Tuddrussel. If you are wondering why she was here, take a guess! Was she just fit for the job? The answer is yes! There was no doubt Sheila was better at her job than either Larry or Tuddrussel. Not only was she more emotionally mature than her fellow time cops, but she also had an extensive knowledge of history that would put even the best historian to shame. Just because she was a woman didn't mean she needed rescuing; she was not a damsel in distress by any means. In fact, she had to rescue Larry and Tuddrussel from danger on many occasions. Helping them complete their missed missions was one of those occasions. However, that was only if Tuddrussel wasn't going to act like a fool (which was likely to happen, knowing his personality). Sheila understood this as she sat Tuddrussel down for a little talk.
"Now, Buck. Do you promise you will cooperate with XJ5 and I?" asked Sheila.
"Yes, Shelia…" sighed Tuddrussel, shaking his head in embarrassment.
"Oh, don't be sad! We're here to help you!" assured Sheila as she patted Tuddrussel on the back, only to be shooed away.
"Yeah, I know! You're just here to flaunt your skills at me!" whimpered Tuddrussel.
"No, Buck! I'm here to help you complete your missions! What else am I here for? To watch you stare at a wall?" Sheila snarked.
"Whatever," muttered Tuddrussel.
Shelia sighed frustratedly as she watched Tuddrussel mope and snivel — to think she had to put up with this. It was unbelievably embarrassing not only for herself, but the entire Time Squad organization. She was more than happy to let Larry and Tuddrussel get fired if she had to deal with pointless bickering and immaturity for the next week. But since she cared deeply about him, she had no choice but to carry on with the mission.
"So, Larry, are you coming with us?" asked Sheila, getting up from the couch while holding Tuddrussel's hand.
"Sorry, I can't! I have a baby to take care of! He's at the age where he's very needy and clingy, and it would be hard lugging around a diaper bag through the Atlantic Ocean. I'll probably wait until he's a little older before bringing him on missions," explained Larry, who was cradling a contented Otto in his arms.
"Okay, I understand! I hear babies can be a lot of work. Perhaps I can babysit once in a while, huh?" Sheila offered.
"Oh, that would be very kind!" chirped Larry. "Now you all stay safe! Don't get sliced by pirates! Little Otto wishes you luck! Isn't that right, cutie pie?"
Otto stared blankly at Larry before breaking into a hiccuping fit. Sheila smiled and chuckled when she heard Otto's hiccups; she thought it was cute that he sounded like a squeaky toy. She tried to fight the urge to pinch Otto's cheeks like she was someone's overly-doting grandma. You heard right — a normally stoic woman was fawning over a newborn baby. On the other hand, XJ5 couldn't stand being in his presence at all. He shuddered and visibly cringed at the sight of the newborn. Gagging and rasping through his perpetually static mouth, he slowly backed away from Otto in fear that he might get contaminated with germs.
"Come on, Sheila. Let's get out of here before the kid gets me sick," XJ5 shivered before opening a miniature computer screen on his left arm and typing the coordinates to their destination.
Within a second, the three time cops were gone in a flash, leaving Larry alone with Otto in his care. While he was excited to spend a few hours one-on-one with the baby, he couldn't help but think of the promise he made with Tuddrussel. Shouldn't they be working together caring for Otto? It surely didn't seem like it, though one could argue they were working together. For example, Larry was the stay-at-home mother, while Tuddrussel was the father who was always at work — typical family dynamic indeed. Nonetheless, Larry still needed to remind himself that everything would (hopefully) be alright.
The robot did some self-talk to distract himself from the thought, "Don't think too much about it, Larry. Tuddrussel has everything under his control… as long as Sheila and XJ5 are helping him. God knows what could happen if they weren't here to help him."
He took a deep breath before glancing down at the baby, deciding what to do with him. Otto wasn't crying or screaming at the moment (which was a good thing in itself), but like most babies, he was erratic. Larry didn't want to jinx himself by expressing his relief at a cry-free moment, so he kept quiet, all while continuing to stare at Otto. He needed to find something to do with him during those tranquil hours.
"How about we engage in some floor time?" declared Larry.
At that, Larry brought Otto to his bedroom. He grabbed a soft blue blanket from the bassinet and laid it flat on the floor in front of his bed. He then laid Otto on top of the blanket and rolled him onto his belly. Upon being placed on his belly, Otto immediately began to struggle. He frustratedly grumbled as he tried his hardest to lift his head off the floor. His legs trembled and shuffled and his arms spread out like a turtle stuck on its back. Despite the baby's obvious angst, Larry was excited to watch Otto learn on his own. He kneeled down to Otto's level and laid on his belly, continuing to happily watch him struggle to lift his head.
"Aww, come on, baby bun! You can do it! Lift your head off the ground! It's not that hard!" Larry cheered as he playfully tapped his fingers on the floor in front of Otto.
Waving his hands obnoxiously in Otto's face didn't work, so Larry tried something else. He got up and began to dig through Otto's toy basket, looking for something to encourage him to lift his head. He tried using a small stuffed rabbit, a squeaker toy meant for dogs, and an empty bottle with some marbles inside — nothing worked. Otto continued to struggle, and Larry was left feeling defeated. What was a robot to do in this situation? Wait, that's it! Larry could use a rattle! This toy should hopefully get Otto's head off the floor! It wasn't guaranteed to instantly make Otto lift his head up, but it was worth a try.
"Look up here! Ooh, what's that?! Is that a rattle?!" the robot chirped as he shook the rattle above Otto.
Otto lifted his head at a 45-degree angle, trying to investigate the rattling sound above him. As expected, Larry began to freak out happily. He clapped his hands and smiled, congratulating Otto for doing what he had been trying to get him to do for the past few minutes.
"Great job, Otto! Great lifting your head! Even if you didn't completely lift your head, you still tried!" cried Larry.
Before he had the chance to take a picture of Otto's first milestone, he was met with a tiny head slamming facefirst on the floor. Otto gave up trying to lift his head and called it a day. With his face still planted in his blanket, Otto fell asleep. Larry couldn't help but chuckle profusely when he caught a glimpse of Otto's mouth wide open. The baby boy looked like a man in the middle of a hangover.
"Well, I guess floor time is over!" chuckled Larry, clasping his hands together.
He rolled Otto onto his back and wrapped him in the blanket used for floor time. While humming quietly to him, he laid the baby boy in his bassinet and planted a kiss on top of his head. Ensuring that Otto would stay asleep, he picked out a blue pacifier and inserted it in the baby's mouth. He stared lovingly into Otto's closed eyes before planting another kiss on his head.
"Sweet dreams, Otto…" whispered Larry as he picked up a small music box and cranked the handle.
With the handle cranked several times, the music box began its performance, playing various nursery rhymes such as "Mary Had A Little Lamb" and "Frere Jacques". Larry hummed along with the tunes as he placed the music box next to Otto in the bassinet. He then quietly tip-toed out of the room, trying not to wake Otto up. Once he was out of the room, he closed the door behind him and began to think of other things to do. He initially thought about making himself a souffle, but it was only a matter of time before Otto would wake up, so he vetoed that plan. He also thought about vacuuming the floors of the space station, but the loud hum of the vacuum would probably spook Otto. Plans of playing the cello and needle painting were considered, but for some unknown reason, didn't come to fruition. Larry had no other choice but to pick up a book and read for the next few hours (or how long Otto sleeps) — and he did. The robot walked into the living room, grabbed a novel from the bookshelf, and sat down on a red chair.
"The Great Gatsby… My favorite novel!" sighed Larry as he opened the book.
Larry laid back in his chair and read his book without a care in the world. He was so immersed in the plot and characters of the book, that he nearly forgot who Tuddrussel was. Of course, he still had to check up on Tuddrussel to see if he was doing what he was supposed to do — which was completing the missed missions. Tuddrusssel did have Sheila and XJ5 helping him, but even their bravery and intelligence weren't enough to salvage him from doing stupid things. As the self-proclaimed stay-at-home mother, it was up to Larry to check up on his "husband" — as well as know if he was safe or not. God knows what trouble Tuddrussel could get himself in without the interference of a certain robot.
Several Hours Later…
All was quiet in the space station. Not a peep could be heard from either Larry or Otto. The only sounds heard were the hum of the furnace, the woosh of asteroids zooming by the station, and Larry's snoring. Yes, Larry was sleeping as well; he was lying back in his chair with the book over his eyes, snoozing away like a teenager after an all-nighter. He was smiling contentedly as he slept, which was quite rare for a robot like him. Perhaps Tuddrussel wasn't around to pester him? Yeah, that could possibly be it. Unfortunately, Larry couldn't sleep any longer as the mechanical clock inside him urged him to wake up. He did so, albeit with plenty of tired grumbling on the side. He got up from the chair and rubbed his eyes, yawning through his perpetually static mouth. Despite the grumpiness that came with waking up, Larry felt energized; he was quite proud of letting himself get some rest.
"I've never gotten this much sleep in days! Thank god I fell asleep in the middle of Chapter 15!" Larry sighed happily, stretching his limbs.
When he began to think about Otto, his contented smile furrowed into a worried frown. What if something bad happened to him while he was sleeping? Every year (even in the pollution and conflict-free future), millions upon millions of babies pass away in their sleep. Sadly, there was no known cause for these sudden deaths; they just happened. Of course, Larry didn't want this to happen to his son, so it was understandable why he was paranoid. Being the protective parent he was, he darted over to his room to check up on Otto.
"Oh, I hope my baby is okay! Ugh, what if I've failed as a parent? Will he be okay when I check up on him?" worried Larry as he opened the door to his room and walked inside.
As he neared the bassinet, he felt a strong sense of relief. He could tell Otto was still alive just by watching his belly expand in and out with his slow, rhythmic breathing. The boy hadn't moved an inch since Larry put him down; he was flat on his back, covered with blankets, and surrounded by stuffed animals. Spitting his pacifier out was the only thing he did since Larry left, but even that wasn't necessarily a cause for alarm. It still didn't completely erase his worries for good — or perhaps he was just being too paranoid and hard on himself. Yeah, let's go with the latter. After all, Larry was known to be a bit of a worry wart at times. Nonetheless, Larry was grateful that Otto was still breathing. With a warm smile planted on his face, he began to gently stroke Otto's cheeks and chin.
"Otto… Otto… Wake up, sweetie…" Larry whispered as he gently stroked Otto's cheeks and chin.
Otto woke up in response to Larry's gentle stroking. He slowly opened his eyes, squinting at the robot standing over him. At first, he was dazed and confused, possibly due to the fact that he had just woken up from a five-hour nap. Those confused emotions wouldn't last long as he began to do the unthinkable. The corners of his tiny mouth curled upward, and his eyes lit up. He was smiling at Larry for the very first time in his life. The robot was more than touched by this unexpected gesture.
"Aw, was that a smile I just saw?!" cooed Larry.
Otto's smile grew bigger as Larry gazed into his eyes. He began to pant excitedly while rapidly kicking his legs, even reaching his little arms up at him. In between his excited panting, he cooed and gurgled. Larry gasped when he heard the squeaky noises come out of Otto's mouth; he couldn't believe that a newborn baby was trying to interact with him, let alone get all pumped up the second he laid eyes on him.
"Was that a coo?!" exulted Larry, clenching his fists in front of his face.
Otto squealed and giggled happily as he continued to reach his arms at the robot. Larry was getting closer to losing his mind when he heard those noises. He was more than touched by the baby's playful way of showing affection.
"Was that a laugh?!" squealed Larry, clenching his fists tighter.
Otto was only 5-weeks old, yet he was cooing and laughing up a storm — which greatly surprised Larry since he didn't expect too much interaction from Otto in the first months. He was wrong. Just because Otto was still a tiny newborn didn't mean he wasn't capable of showing happiness and gratitude.
"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god! He's doing everything at once! HE LOVES ME!" Larry cheered as he jumped up and down, making Otto laugh even harder.
He darted out of his bedroom to call Tuddrussel on the phone. Despite being stuck in the 14th Century with Christopher Columbus, Tuddrussel was somehow able to contact Larry with his cellphone. Unfortunately for Tuddrussel, he was in the middle of a full-on battle between Christopher Columbus' crew and a random group of pirates. Not helping was that Christopher Columbus was completely oblivious to what was going on; he was busy selling hotdogs to some dolphins. He was lucky that Sheila and XJ5 were helping him fight the pirates — without them, the man would've most likely walked the plank by now.
"Hello?" said Tuddrussel, holding his cell phone up to his ear as he engaged in an intense sword fight with another pirate.
"TUDDRUSSEL! TUDDRUSSEL! GUESS WHAT OTTO DID TODAY! GUESS!" chirped Larry.
"Lemme guess, he pooped in his diaper again?" guessed Tuddrussel.
"No! He not only smiled at me for the first time, but he also cooed and laughed at me!" Larry declared excitedly as Otto continued to giggle in the background.
"Aw, my boy is growing up so fast! Just the other day, he puked on my shoulder! It's too bad I wasn't here to witness his first smile…" Tuddrussel began to gush over Otto, distracting himself from the sword fight.
"Oh, it's alright! I'm pretty sure he'll give you lots of smiles when you get back! He's a cuddle bug!" assured Larry.
"Yeah, he needs to prove it… He doesn't seem happy when I hold him," Tuddrussel muttered right before he got his back sliced by a sword.
"Don't be such a Debbie Downer! Like I said, I'm pretty sure he'll be very excited to see you when you get back! See you later!" Larry sang before hanging up on the phone, ignoring Tuddrussel's agonizing screams.
The second he put the phone down, Larry darted back to his room. He was met with even more giggles and coos when he walked in front of the bassinet. Otto was itching for someone to play with him after his long nap — and boy, was it apparent with all the hyperactive flailing and kicking. Larry grinned as Otto continued to giggle at him. Despite the excitement, he still couldn't believe (let alone understand) why Otto was suddenly acting playful. Nonetheless, he felt proud as a parent, especially since he caused Otto to smile for the first time.
"Come here, you!" squealed Larry as he scooped Otto from his bassinet and cuddled him close to his face.
Since he was in such close proximity to Larry's face, Otto saw the opportunity to do something special for him. He wrapped his stubby arms around the middle of Larry's head and cooed happily, occasionally taking a break to lick his face like an excited puppy. The robot tried not to break down in tears as Otto hugged and licked his head. Larry was so overwhelmed by all the affection, he couldn't stand up anymore. He wobbled back and forth on his feet before plopping onto his metallic buttocks on the floor. Shedding a few oil tears from his eyes, he pried Otto off his head and hugged him back. He continuously thanked him for acknowledging that he was more than just a servant who brings him milk and clean diapers.
"You made my day! You really did!" Larry cried happily. "Oh, Otto… You don't know how much crap I go through on a daily basis! With Tuddrussel's immaturity and the missions… You're the one thing that makes me smile! You're the sun that makes the clouds go away!"
Otto tilted his head and cooed questioningly.
"Yes, you should be very proud of yourself, young man! To make a grumpy robot smile is a huge accomplishment! I want you to keep smiling and laughing for the rest of the day! Be a happy baby bun for me!" grinned Larry.
The baby stared blankly at Larry before bursting into another giggling fit. Larry flashed a warm smile at Otto, pleasantly surprised to see that he understood him. It wasn't every day that a baby as young as Otto could understand words being spoken to him.
"That's my boy!" the robot chirped before sitting down on his bed and laying Otto in his lap.
The second he laid his butt on the bed, Larry began to think of things to do that would keep Otto smiling. He considered peek-a-boo, but then he realized that the baby might be too young for that game. Other things he considered were giving him a warm bath, singing lullabies, and tickling him — he ended up choosing the latter as it was the most effective. Otto knew right away that Larry was going to tickle him. When he saw the robot's hands descend toward his belly, he panted excitedly and kicked his legs.
"Ticky-ticky-ticky BOOP!" Larry playfully babbled, tickling Otto's belly before tapping his nose.
Otto cooed and gurgled as Larry continued to tickle him. Larry would eventually grow bored of tickling him and tried something else — something that was just as fun, if not more of a thrill than the standard tickle on the belly. He covered his eyes with Otto's hands and turned his head side-to-side as if he was obscured by a blanket.
"Where's the baby?! Where's the baby?! Where's the baby bun?!" exclaimed Larry before abruptly letting go of Otto's hands. "THERE HE IS!"
Otto gave Larry his approval by flashing him a slight smile. He, unfortunately, did not utter a single full-blown laugh at this game; as previously stated, he was too young to understand the rules of peek-a-boo. That didn't mean he hated it though — if he hated it, he would've been bawling at the top of his lungs. Still, Larry was rather disappointed about not receiving the attention he hoped for. As he brainstormed some more games to play, Otto seized Larry's hand and brought it to his mouth, nibbling and sucking on it. This interrupted Larry's train of thought, and he once again began to squeal over the baby chewing on his hand.
"OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD! ARE YOU USING MY HAND AS A CHEW TOY?! THAT'S SUPER CUTE!" Larry squealed like a teenage girl.
The robot scooped Otto into his arms and cradled him tightly, gazing deeply into his eyes. Otto stared back at Larry, inciting the two to participate in a silent, but friendly staring contest. They copied each other's facial expressions, uttered noises back and forth at each other, and even nuzzled each other's noses (despite the fact that Larry didn't have a nose). They would continue to stare at each other until Otto abruptly broke the gaze to hug his chest. The cherry on top was a sweet coo reminding Larry that life was good. The robot held Otto closer, further encouraging the hug.
"Aww! I love you too, sweetie! I'll always love you!" cooed Larry before planting a kiss on Otto's forehead.
Larry once again held Otto against his face, nuzzling against him like a cat. This gave Otto an opportunity to hug his head as well, prompting some more happy tears from Larry. How could such a tiny newborn show so much affection toward him? Perhaps it was to thank him for saving him from freezing and starving to death in the Chicago cold. He considered himself very proud of what he had done. To save a newborn from rotting in a cardboard box on the side of the streets was a huge accomplishment — yet for weeks, he wasn't rewarded for it. Not a single pat on the back or compliment was given. Not one. Especially from a certain muscular oaf. This all changed when Otto smiled and laughed, reminding Larry that he did in fact do a good deed. A baby's first smile was often declared by many to be a sign of great accomplishment in parenting, akin to a teacher giving a student an A+ on a test. Not to mention, it was also a sign that a friendly, strong parent-and-child relationship was in the works.