A Thousand Oceans Wide

It was a bit before lunchtime, and Tom had only one plan. After sending Bill to the hospital with his mother, Tom drove to the preschool and parked outside before walking in and being greeted once again by some stares from the children at the playground. He nodded and smiled at them. Some winced, while others scoffed. However, there were those that smiled big at him. These children were the older ones, and he wondered where his one little boy was.

"Hi," came a voice behind him. "May I help you?" And Tom turned to come face to face with the lady he had seen once before.

"Hi," Tom said, offering a polite smile. "May I know if Heidi's supposed to lunch in today? I'd like to ask her out. And her... Her brother, Markus, if that's alright." As he spoke, he felt his confidence build. He could do this, he thought. And he wished Bill was there cheering him on.

"It's up to her, but may I know who are you?" the lady asked, skeptical as ever.

"I'm their... I'm her friend, Tom," he said. Saying boyfriend, Tom thought, would be taking it too far for now. They weren't exactly together yet, considering what happened just yesterday. He was proud he got through last night, and Bill received credit for being the world's best brother.

The woman nodded. "I'll tell her," she said, and she went in, leaving Tom waiting outside. He looked around and a group of smaller children came marching by through the main gate and he wondered if Markus was there. Indeed, the child was. There was only one striking platinum blonde in the group of darker blondes and brunettes, and he held a twig in his hand. He looked adorable, Tom thought. It was inevitable he thought that way because that was, believe or not, his actual son.

"TomTom!" Markus piped up when he caught the older boy's sight. "Tom! See, twig!" The kid marched right past him in rows of two, and Tom managed to give the child a ruffle of his hair.

"Go look for Heidi," Tom urged, giving a little grin. And Markus disappeared through the entrance of the school.

Inside, Heidi was approached by the woman who told her about Tom. "He's outside now," she said.

Heidi nodded. "Thank you," she said. Why was he here?, she thought. She never expected to see him again after yesterday, but another part of her was glad he came down here today. She took a deep breath as she adjusted her clothing proper. She walked slowly towards outside, her heart thumping faster with every step. The girl thought about the things that were coming. Maybe he was going to apologize, and tell her he was going to leave. It would be a devastating déjà vu, like the last time he left Magdeburg. She couldn't stop thinking of all the possible excuses he had for looking for her, and soon her train of thought lost track when Markus and his class came in.

"Heidi!" Markus said in a happy voice. "TomTom is outside." And he disappeared into his classroom with the other children. Heidi smiled, her eyes watering. She wondered how long more he would be calling her Heidi, and Tom as TomTom. Wishful thinking, she thought to herself.

The blonde girl took a final deep breath before stepping out of the school front door. There Tom was, standing facing the kids in the playground, his hands tucked deep into his jeans pocket. She noticed he looked very captivated by the children there. Either that, or he was just staring blankly. Once again, Tom was deep in thought. He tried to find the words to say when he would finally see her.

Heidi went up to him, but kept her distance. She sniffled slightly and cleared her throat, hoping Tom would just turn around. And he did. His face brightened, and there was a tinge of redness on his cheeks. Heidi felt awkward once more.

"Hi," Tom swallowed and gave a small nod. He offered a small smile. Was he allowed to embrace her? He didn't know. He decided not.

"Hi," she mumbled, hands held together at her abdomen. He could read her body language, and she was definitely uneasy about this.

"I hope you're hungry," Tom gave a soft laugh. "We could go to that old grill down the road," he offered, acting like everything was normal. "And you can... You can bring Markus if you want."

Heidi felt a tiny bit unnerving at the sudden friendliness of it all. She wondered if Tom was getting over this and getting it right like she hoped, or was he just playing nice first and then break it to her and tell her he's leaving. "I am," she said, being nice as well. She kept her hopes high, because she believed Tom still had that bit in him where he wasn't just a naive eighteen-year-old. "And we don't have to bring him. It's okay." She knew with Markus, it was going to be weird.

"No," Tom said. "Bring him. We have things to tell him," and he smiled. Once again, Tom felt this sense of pride wash over him. He had never felt more responsible about anything, and less so had he even thought he would actually be a father.

Heidi looked at Tom. "Are you sure?" she asked. Was she being too hopeful? She hoped not.

"I hope he likes grilled chicken like I do," Tom managed a half-grin, looking down at his shuffling feet as he shifted his weight on the other foot. And he looked up at Heidi again. He felt this overwhelming sense of joy being discovered in him when he saw that smile Heidi gave. It meant so much to him. He took his hands out of his pocket and crossed his arms, giving a few nods as he tried to hide a smile unsuccessfully. "So, yeah. Go get him."

"Okay," the girl swallowed, tears in her eyes as she tried her best not to let it roll down her cheeks. She reached to wipe it away but the next thing she knew, Tom had his hands on her face, thumbs helping to rid her pretty face of the tears that stubbornly fell. They were that close to each other then, and Tom hated his cap at times like this because it hindered their distance.

The young man bit on his lower lip, taking in her etherealness being this close to her like a long time ago. "Don't cry," he said. And he tucked her golden curls behind her ear, his lips lingering close to hers. He wanted to kiss her badly, and to stop her from tearing but he didn't. Not yet, he told himself.

Heidi couldn't breathe when Tom embraced her so lovingly. She thought she was dreaming. The young woman sniffled slightly, knowing her greatest dream was going to come true soon enough. Tom was... Tom was unbelievably understanding about this, and she was so thankful. She needed a way to express her thoughts and feelings, so she threw him a spontaneous hug, her face buried in his neck. "Tom," she mumbled, eyes squeezing shut when she did.

Tom broke into an understanding emotional smile as he wrapped his arms around her little waist. "Heidi," he said back to her, not knowing what else to say. And his smile faded, realizing this was a perfect time to ask for forgiveness for being that selfish person he was just a day before. "And forgive me, again. Please? I overreacted. I really did."

"Yes," she said. "Yes, of course." Of course she forgave him. If he was willing to take a chance, she would take it with him. She would totally forget what happened yesterday. It was only right for Tom to overreact, because it wasn't the world's easiest news to take in, to be very honest. She was just glad he let it sink in, and it didn't freak him out and hide from her. She was right. He was the man she thought he could be.

"Good," Tom smiled, moistening his lips as he inhaled her sweet flowery scent that made him quite dizzy. Having renewed the forgiveness, Tom felt whole again. He never felt happier about something in his life. "Thank you." His hands stroked her soft curls of her golden locks of hair.

Heidi took a deep breath to stabilize herself before she pulled back, looking into his eyes as their noses almost touched. "I'll go... I'll go get him," she gave a shy smile before wiping her eyes once more. And she turned and disappeared through the door. Tom watched his girl adoringly, awaiting for her reappearance with the little wonder they both created, a boy named Markus.