A Thousand Oceans Wide

The street was quiet, but there were a few activities being carried out here and there in people's front porches. When Bill spoke, to Tom, it added life to the scene.

"Are we late?" he asked his twin brother. They had been waiting for their limousine cab to arrive, one that would be able to hold their last few bags and they themselves. The rest of their tour luggage were already sent to David's hotel the previous night so that their things would all be transported to the hotel at once, together with the instruments.

Tom kicked at the ground, bringing a random pebble to live, shooting it across the street. "Nope," Tom answered. He wasn't even sure if they were, but he knew that they would be waiting for them, anyway. And then there was a low rumbling sound and soon, the cab came into view. "Finally," Tom sighed, jumping off the luggage he was on and onto his feet.

Bill gave a similar sigh, smiling when the cab stopped before them. Heftily, Bill transferred the items in the vehicle with Tom's and the driver's help.

Heidi and Markus were at the Berlin-Schönefeld International Airport, arriving just in time. Tom, Bill, Georg and Gustav arrived three hours before their takeoff to check in, and it was almost noon, so they had roughly an hour more before Heidi and Markus had to return to school and Tom had to leave.

At a quaint Starbucks neatly tucked away in a corner, Tom invited his girlfriend and son there for some quiet time. There were merely tourists there and at noon, it wasn't as crowded as early mornings or late nights so Tom had little to fret about. And most girls in town would be in school.

The young man who was wearing a smart-looking black pair of shades pulled out a chair for Heidi and she sat, thanking him softly. She watched Markus get off his stroller and dart to the display box. Tom gave a light chuckled when Markus started to point to each one of them, saying he wanted to eat it.

"You can only have one," Heidi reminded him, half-smiling at the little child who was staring greedily at the muffins, brownies and pies. She crossed her leg and rested her arms on the table, eyes on Markus.

"Aw," Tom looked at Heidi through sparkling eyes. "Two, maybe? I won't be buying him stuff for a while, remember?"

"Two!" Markus exclaimed, earning himself little smiles from the baristas behind the counter. "Two cakes!"

Heidi shot Tom a narrow gaze, lips curled into a tiny creeping smirk. "If your dad says so," the young mother gave a pleasant sigh and stood up. As she passed by Tom, he reached for her hand and stuffed a couple of notes in her hand before resting his elbows on the little round table, chin resting comfortably on his upturned palms.

The girl gave Tom a look but he ignored it, smiling back at her. "Take it," he said. "And I think I'm getting a vanilla latte."

"Do you want food?" Heidi asked, cocking her head at Tom with a mini smirk as her hands found Markus' head. "Maybe you might want to share it with him."

Tom narrowed his gaze scrutinizingly at the display before him. "Okay," he said. "Pick whatever you think I would like. I would most probably eat it." He nodded to Heidi.

Heidi turned to gaze at the menu for a while before standing arms akimbo while Markus played with the coffee beans on display at the side. Tom watched Markus and as the child was about to put a bean in his mouth, the older Kaulitz immediately shouted his son's name. "Markus!"

With a little mock frown, Tom got up and went to Markus, scooping him up and making him lose his grip on the bean as the father rested the child on his supportive forearm. Heidi turned just in time to comprehend the situation and she quickly patted Markus' red cheeks with her fingers. "What are you doing?" she asked, not exactly expecting an answer.

"Eating the bean," Markus replied with a sheepish smile. Heidi couldn't resist the young boy's charm and she ended up cupping his face and giving her son a kiss on the nose. Markus responded with a blushing flinch. Tom watched in silent adoration, bouncing the child on his arm. He had a permanent smile plastered on his face as he observed the mother and son.

Heidi turned back to the counter person and placed her orders. "One vanilla latte, one caramel latte. Um, one chicken pie and one brownie."

"I want the chocolate muffin!" Markus gravitated heavily towards the glass of the display at the side, his arms dangling, reaching to touch the food as Tom tried his best to hold his son steady. "I want the chocolate muffin!"

Tom smirked and kissed Markus cheeks instinctively. And he decided to ask a common question, but this time it was to his own son so he felt pretty special about it. "What's the magic word?"

Markus eyed his father with a little pout. "Please?" Soon, the pout turned into a subtle smile, earning a heartwarming grin from Tom in return. He bounced Markus again as Heidi automatically added their son's request to the order.

As they were about to leave the counter after payment, the barista spoke. "Hey, you're Tom Kaulitz, right? Can I take a picture with you?" And Tom and Heidi studied the person briefly. It was a teenager about his own age with an eyebrow piercing and dangerously layered black hair.

"Yeah," Tom said. "And sure." He looked at Markus and Heidi for a while before the girl automatically went to carry her son from Tom. She returned to the table after getting the food, watching Tom and the fan from afar.

Tom had smiled halfway, waiting as the counter person snapped one for the teenage boy on his phone before nodding. "And can you sign this for me?" the boy asked, lifting the green apron he had on.

"Yeah, no problem," Tom said. He hoped this fan wouldn't ask too much... about Heidi and Markus. Tom took the marker he offered and signed it nice and big before standing upright again. Heidi, who was silently eating, glanced at her boyfriend once in a while.

The Starbucks teenager grinned. "This is awesome," he gushed. "Thanks. And can I ask you one more thing? I'm a bit curious; who's that girl and kid you're hanging out with?"

"Let's say, we're related," Tom shot him a fake smirk before grabbing their lattes and heading back to his table. It may have seemed slightly rude, but he didn't really mind. Outside Starbucks was one Tobi who was watching out for Tom, Heidi and Markus. Tobi looked at Tom questioningly but Tom shook his head and his hand motioned for Tobi to stand down. Everything was alright, it seemed. It was unfortunate that this fan was the enthusiastic kind, so he wasn't afraid to ask questions.

Tom returned to the table and settled down with their drinks. Markus was on the chair beside his parents, on his knees, probing at his chocolate muffin in a focused way. "Thank you," Heidi smiled awkwardly when Tom passed her the caramel latte. She took a little sip and looked at him. "What happened?"

"He asked about you and Marki," Tom answered truthfully as he cut a piece of his pie, scooping the piece on his fork before pausing and looking at Heidi. "Guess what I said."

Heidi raised her eyebrows. "You told them the truth?"

"No," Tom gave a soft laugh. Although, he wish he could just say the truth. It just wasn't the right time yet. "I said we were related."

The girl eyed Tom skeptically before breaking into a short laugh. "You're brilliant. It's so... open-ended," she said as she took a bite out of her brownie.

"Why, thank you!" Tom replied in a singsong tone, churning another small laugh from Heidi. He glanced at the boy at the counter and saw him taking pictures. One thing, though, he was glad that Heidi's back was to the teenager so they couldn't really get her face. He had no idea where the pictures would go.

Tom glanced down at Markus and lowered his face to the same level as him, staring at the chocolate muffin as well.

"Aren't you going to start eating it?" Tom asked. He was curious to know why the child hasn't started on it yet. Heidi swirled her caramel latter and cocked her head at her son with a tight-lipped smile, anticipating the child's reply.

Markus gazed at Tom with wide eyes. "I don't have a fork."

Heidi gasped and blushed. "I'll get it-"

"I'll go," Tom said, nodding to Heidi with a pleasant smile. Meanwhile, Heidi licked her own fork clean and passed it to Markus who happily stabbed it into his muffin, eating it finally.

It was about twenty minutes later when they were done with their food and drinks, and Tom received a call from David that they were going to go to the departure hall already. Tom, Heidi and Markus left Starbucks with their son carrying a bag of chicken sandwich that Tom bought for him.

Hand in hand after they disappeared out of view of Starbucks, Tom reached to hold Heidi's hand while Markus was running around in front them towards a beckoning Bill Kaulitz.

"I'm going to miss your little acts of childishness!" Bill exclaimed, scooping Markus up into his arms. "I really will, you know?"

"I know," Markus grinned widely and waved the Starbucks paper bag in front of Bill's face. "See? My daddy bought me a chicken sandwich."

"A sandwich?" Bill gasped in mock shock. "Oh, wow!" His eyes widened in simulated surprise when Markus took it out of the bag. The boy clenched his jaws together and nodded, little teeth showing.

Georg and Gustav went over to be entertained by Markus, and so did everyone else from the Tokio Hotel crew. Heid and Tom smiled to themselves contentedly before two or three left Markus to go to them.

"I can't believe it," Dunja, their PR, said. And Natalie came over as well, eyes wide in amazement.

"I was really laughing when David told me!" Natalie, their makeup artist, smirked. "This is amazing. He's a really cute boy!"

"And you must be the girl," Dunja smiled. Slowly, the whole crew was introduced to Heidi and Markus, and Tom was never more proud and embarrassed at the same time. One thing was for sure, he didn't release Heidi's hand from his for he knew deep inside he wouldn't be holding it for at least two weeks to come.

Soon enough, David informed everyone they had to file in to the departure hall.

Tom looked at his girlfriend as soon as everyone left. There was only Bill, David and him from the crew outside the departure hall. "So," Tom sighed, holding Heidi's hands in his own. And he glanced down, thinking of what to say.

"I'll see you soon," Heidi started with a smile, trying to lighten up the mood, easing the tension that hung heavily in the air.

"Take care. I'll miss you," he said. And he glanced at Markus who was once again peeping inside his paper bag. "And you. Come here, you!" Tom said as he grabbed his son and carried him with a soft smile playing on his lips. Bill gazed at his twin brother and old friend dearly before eyeing his little nephew with great empathy.

Markus gave an enthusiastic squeal as Tom gave him a kiss on the cheek. Heidi laughed and kissed her son's other cheek.

"Wait!" Tom said suddenly. He turned to Bill. "Please take a picture of us!" And he quickly pulled out his digital camera from his pocket and threw it to the other who caught it. "I can't believe I totally forgot about it." He looked at Heidi and blushed a little.

Bill instructed the three to stand closer together with Tom holding their son. "One, two, three!" He passed the camera to Tom. "Just one will do?"

"One means a lot," Tom smiled before turning back to Heidi, back turned entirely on Bill so that he could have some private space. "Hey," he said to Heidi as he held her cheeks lovingly.

Heidi gazed up through her small almond-shaped eyes at her boyfriend who was going away. "We're really going to miss you. Have fun, okay?" Her hands went up to clutch Tom's that were holding her face.

Tom nodded with his eyes closed before opening to look at her again. Markus was lingering in between the two of them, gazing up longingly at both his parents.

The young man took a deep breath. "I love you," Tom said finally.

Heidi looked back at Tom with the same intense loving stare he gave her. "I love you, too," she whispered back before they embraced each other in a soft kiss. Markus stared with a little smile before covering his eyes when he saw Bill trying to tell him to do so. Bill smirked when Markus put his hands over his face.

Tom pulled away. "I'll call you when I reach there," he told her, rubbing her waist. She smiled at him before he asked. "Do you trust me, Heidi?"

"I do," Heidi smiled. It assured Tom so much whenever she answered that special question of his. All he needed was for her to believe him and believe in him. She gave him a long, hard peck on the lips as she held his face close before pulling back to grin at him widely. "See you." She pushed him away slightly before her hand reached to hold Markus'.

Tom smiled and got on one knee before his son, engulfing the kid in a huge hug. "Remember, I'm your daddy," Tom grinned and inhaled Markus' baby soap scent, mentally storing the way he smelled.

"Okay!" Markus said as Bill and David watched in quiet adoration.

"Let's go, Tom," David reminded them, feeling bad to play the bad guy to split up this little family moment.

"Where are you going?" Markus asked.

"To America," Tom smiled down on his son.

"You can see your daddy on TV soon, okay?" Heidi said. Markus grinned.

Bill clapped his hands before going to exchange hugs with his nephew and Heidi. "Take care," he said to her, giving her kisses on the cheek. Heidi blushed. And without another minute to spare, the Kaulitz twins and their manager left for their boarding call.

In the plane, Tom took out his camera. Bill was searching hungrily for his bag of Skittles and was oblivious to Tom. The older twin viewed his latest picture, and sighed when he saw it; a very happy impromptu portrait of him, his girlfriend and his son all grinning widely back at him.

He sighed at how beautiful Heidi looked. So demure, so exquisite.