Tuddrussel couldn't be any more proud of what he accomplished in the past hour and a half. In a span of a hundred minutes, he had fed Otto an entire bottle, given him a bath, and massaged him. Now after all that, he was lying in bed, engaging in skin-to-skin contact with Otto. Both Otto and Tuddrussel were shirtless, wearing nothing more than a diaper and a pair of boxers, gloves, and trademark mask and goggles respectively. The man was gently stroking Otto while gazing adoringly into his sleeping eyes. Tuddrussel was not only proud of all the work he accomplished, but he was also surprised by how easy Otto was. Not once did the baby cry or whimper while he made his bottle, when he scrubbed him in the bath, and even when he accidentally got soap in his eyes. Every minute consisted of incessant cooing and gurgling specifically directed toward Tuddrussel, who was more than happy to receive such attention.
"Oh, you were so talkative in the bath, weren't you?! You were oohing and ahhing up a storm while I scrubbed your belly! What were you trying to say to me, hmm?" cooed Tuddrussel as he continued to stroke Otto's back.
Since Otto was asleep, no response was made. Tuddrussel tried to get him to coo by briefly tickling his chin, but that didn't change anything. No matter how many times Tuddrussel tickled his chin or echoed noises back at him, Otto still didn't budge. He instead yawned and buried his face deeper into Tuddrussel's chest. Despite the lack of cooing from Otto, Tuddrussel was pleased regardless. As he smiled like an absolute goof, he cuddled the baby boy close to his chin and continued to stroke and pat his back.
"It's alright, kiddo! I understand!" Tuddrussel answered.
Otto flashed a slight smile and clung onto Tuddrussel's chin, nuzzling his face against it like a cat rubbing against a scratching post. Tuddrussel giggled again as the baby cuddled him; he didn't even mind the pudgy little fingers pinching his chin. The baby would eventually grow too tired to grip any longer and he let go of Tuddrussel's chin, tumbling off his chest. Luckily, Tuddrussel was able to catch him with his arm. To prevent such a fall from happening again, Tuddrussel wrapped an arm around Otto when he laid him on his chest.
Tuddrussel began to talk to Otto, "Kiddo, I promise in all my heart that Larry and I will be great parents. We've always wanted someone to help us during our missions… and I think you're the perfect candidate! You may be too little to go on the missions with us, but I know that once you're older, you're gonna be a big help! I can already tell that you're gonna be a very smart… helpful little boy! Larry and I think that you have potential… Remember, at Time Squad, we enforce the past to protect our future… Please include that in your graduation speech… just for your mommy and daddy! Okay?!"
Suddenly, Otto began to fuss and whine. He squirmed and flailed vigorously, struggling to pull his legs up to his chest. These pitiful whimpers distracted Tuddrussel from his trance, prompting him to find a way to calm Otto before a full-blown crying fit could ensue. Luckily, he was able to find a way immediately.
"Aww… Does little Otto need to burp?! Oh, yes he does need to burp! Yes he does!" Tuddrussel cooed with a concerned frown plastered on his face.
Tuddrussel rose into a sitting position and transitioned Otto from his chest to his shoulder. He patted and rubbed the baby's back while assuring him that he was not in danger. He hummed some quiet lullabies to distract Otto from bursting into tears. As Tuddrussel was humming, Otto opened his eyes and began gagging, spitting up small amounts of milk from his mouth. Tuddrussel noticed a yellowish-white liquid pouring down his back and immediately began scrambling around for a towel. Once he was able to snag a towel from the bathroom, he slung it over his shoulder and continued to pat and rub Otto's back, encouraging more milk to come out of Otto's mouth. All the disgorged milk was topped with a big burp, thus ending the angst. Satisfied, Otto began cooing and gurgling while nuzzling against Tuddrussel's shoulder. Tuddrussel smiled at the baby as he brought him back into his arms.
"I should've not fed you the entire bottle in one go, huh?!" chuckled Tuddrussel, gently rocking Otto.
Otto gurgled at Tuddrussel, kicking his legs and flailing his arms excitedly.
"Yes, you did hurl your entire meal all over daddy! It's a good thing I found a towel because daddy and the bed would've been a mess!" Tuddrussel answered. "Speaking of messy Tuddrussel, I'm going to throw the towel into the laundry hamper right now!"
He placed Otto down and rushed into the laundry room, throwing the stained towel into a hamper. Once he did that, he went back to his room to play with Otto, who was kicking and squirming happily, cooing his heart out. Tuddrussel scooped Otto back into his arms and began gazing into his eyes. Otto's coos and gurgles grew more cheerful and melodic as the man inched his face closer to him. When Tuddrussel stuck his face close to Otto, the baby tugged on his nose. Tuddrussel smiled and chuckled as Otto tugged on his nose. Although it stung, Tuddrussel was still grateful, nonetheless. To prevent the baby from getting too carried away, Tuddrussel pried Otto's hands off his nose and confined his flailing limbs with his non-dominant hand. Despite the confinement, Otto was still happy as a clam, cooing louder as Tuddrussel stared at him.
"Oh, you've got something important to talk about?! Let me hear it!" chirped Tuddrussel.
Otto continued to coo and gurgle as Tuddrussel intently listened. The man enjoyed every moment of the tiny noises; he enjoyed them so much, he began encouraging Otto to hold a conversation with him.
"Aww! Are you speaking baby?! I wanna try speaking baby!" Tuddrussel grinned before starting his own chain of babyish cooing and gurgling noises.
Tuddrussel and Otto would take turns cooing and gurgling at each other for the next several minutes. For every "goo", there was a "gah". And for every "ooh", there was an "ah". It was a primitive, yet convenient way of conversation — not to mention, adorable as well. Little did they know that Larry was walking by the room, carrying a basket of dirty laundry. At first, Larry minded his own business, but then he heard a chorus of coos and gurgles, varying from deep and manly to squeaky and babyish. Curious about the noise, Larry peeked in the room to see Tuddrussel sitting on his bed, cooing at Otto. After Tuddrussel was done cooing, Otto began to gurgle, kicking and flailing his limbs excitedly. The way Tuddrussel and Otto would patiently wait for each other to finish their turn was too much for Larry to handle; it was as if the two clearly understood each other, despite the large and obvious age difference. They indeed understood each other, because when Tuddrussel inched his face close to Otto, the baby's smile grew bigger. He tried to fight the urge to squeal like a teenage girl as he watched Tuddrussel and Otto touch each other's noses. He wanted to join in with them, unleashing his own unique coos and gurgles.
"Oh, they're so cute together! Making cute noises and… touching each other's noses?! Aw, Tuddy… You've got a new best friend in your hands…" Larry squealed quietly.
Despite wanting to join in, he didn't want Tuddrussel to catch him eavesdropping. Staying as silent as he could, he walked away like nothing ever happened. Still, he couldn't let go of what he had just witnessed. It was one of the most adorable things the robot had seen in his entire life. Even more than the random puppy he encountered on a mission a while back. Even more than the times when Otto slept peacefully. Especially even more than the times when Tuddrussel was being nice. Granted, he always wanted Tuddrussel to show some generosity, but when he watched the supposedly irresponsible manchild play with Otto, it melted his heart.
"I knew I should've trusted him from the very beginning…" murmured Larry.
Larry was right. He should've trusted Tuddrussel from the day they adopted Otto. After all, it wasn't like the man was planning on intentionally maiming the baby for his own sadistic amusement. Tuddrussel wasn't a sociopath by any means; he was immature and rambunctious, but that didn't mean he lacked a soft spot, specifically for young, helpless babies. If anything, it was Larry who was the bad guy for not letting Tuddrussel help out with the responsibilities. How a single robot could dog a man for so long and so much was astounding, especially given the history of their relationship. Thankfully, he turned over a new leaf, even if it was at a gradual pace. From then on, he would learn to accept that Tuddrussel would occasionally take over duties as the parent, whether it was changing Otto's diapers, giving him his bottles, or even babysitting while Larry would go on the missions. They would have to take turns caring for Otto, using precise and dignified teamwork. After all, they would each earn some well-deserved breaks for their hard work. As long as Larry and Tuddrussel had each other's backs, everything would be just fine.
THE END