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Chapter 6 - Lukas' hard work is starting to pay off.
The few things the boys had with them in the hospital were packed in Bastian’s bag and they were now having one final talk before Lukas would be released. Each of the therapists gave Lukas a package detailing the exercises they wanted him to do at home, telling him that he would be expected to do the work on his own every day and they would know during their weekly appointments if he hadn’t been keeping up. Bastian promised to make sure he did his homework, grinning when Lukas glared at him for the comment.
There was paperwork to be filled out and signed, which Bastian had to do as Lukas still couldn’t write. Once all the necessary details were taken care of, the therapists all in turn congratulated Lukas on the progress he’d made so far. They started to leave the room until only Katya, the occupational therapist, was left. She smiled at the boys and leaned against the wall. “I bet you’re awfully glad to be getting out of here finally, aren’t you?” She winked at the both of them. “Don’t forget I’ll be dropping by on Sunday, likely sometime around eleven-ish. I don’t usually make house calls, but I have to admit that the unprofessional side of me is just dying to see where you live.”
Bastian grinned at the comment, nudging Lukas. “Looking for stories to tell her friends, I bet.” He looked back at Katya and raised one eyebrow. “You’re not going to steal a pair of his underwear, are you?” Lukas looked at Bastian, shocked disbelief on his face. Bastian ignored him.
Katya, however, looked thoughtful. “Well, I wasn’t going to, but now that you’ve put the thought into my head…” She paused for a moment and laughed at Lukas’ expression of disbelief. “Well then, on that note I should get going before I say anything else that could get me fired.” She laughed and hugged them before leaving the room.
Now it was the two friends, alone and ready to go home. Bastian looked at Lukas, a very happy smile on his face. “I suppose we should go, then. Unless you want to stay for a bit longer?” Lukas shook his head and uttered a very firm ‘no’ before sticking his arm out. Bastian linked his arm through Lukas’, his bag hoisted over his other shoulder. They started making their way to the front of the Schwabinger Hospital, a slow process at Lukas’ pace, but Bastian was just happy his friend was walking again. They received quite a few stares as they entered the main reception area of the building, everyone recognizing them.
Lukas’ concussion had been huge news in the German media and there had been a rather large outpouring of support from fans all over the country. Munich citizens, of course, were quite anxious for the young star to recover. So it was amidst many open mouthed stares and excited whispers that the pair headed for the exit. Bastian thought it was nice and touching, since he actually looked around at the faces and saw all of the happy, tear-filled expressions.
Lukas, however, kept his head down and didn’t want to look at anyone. He was aware of the excitement he was causing at the moment, but he was far too embarrassed by it to want to acknowledge it. He just hoped no one would say anything to him, or, even worse of a prospect, ask for an autograph. What would he say? ‘No sorry, I can’t even hold a pen right now’? So he kept hoping that they could make it out of the building and to the car without anyone stopping them.
Unfortunately for him, his fans were too excited to see him up and leaving the hospital to stay quiet. The silence was broken by the voices of a few fans, two young girls and a boy. “We love you, Poldi!” It was as though the yelled comment of the kids suddenly allowed everyone else to let out the feelings of pride they were trying to keep in as they watched their much loved young hero on his feet again. The majority of the people in the room started clapping, and a few more shouts were made, including a “We love you too, Schweini!” which made Bastian laugh and wave at the girl who’d yelled it.
He could tell that Lukas wasn’t quite as happy with the response. Bastian leaned his head close to Lukas’, whispering in his ear. “Lukas, would you please acknowledge them?” He could tell Lukas was embarrassed. Bastian wished he wasn’t, he wished Lukas could be as proud of himself as everyone else was at the moment. But he wasn’t and that bothered Bastian. “Please?” He stopped walking, hoping that Lukas would do something to let his fans know he cared about their support.
Lukas knew he should be grateful. Really, he knew it. Being able to play professionally was one dream, but to do so as a popular player, to have the support of fans all over-- that was another dream that unfortunately not everyone got to experience. Right now he wished he was one of those players who didn’t get noticed. But he knew Bastian was right, he knew that he had to do something. So he turned around and waved, forcing a smile to his lips. He hoped it was enough.
Bastian was relieved when Lukas waved. For a moment he’d really thought Lukas wouldn’t acknowledge them; that he’d try and hide behind Bastian and refuse to greet his fans. Luckily though, Lukas had done what he needed to do and the wave was enough for Bastian to start walking again, leading Lukas out to the parking lot. The little wave had apparently been enough for the fans at the hospital, as no one followed them to the car. Bastian was quite grateful for that.
He got Lukas settled into the passenger seat of his car before slipping quickly into the driver’s seat and sliding the key into the ignition. The radio immediately came on, some rock song playing on Energy 93.3 that Bastian didn’t recognize right away. They were both quiet as Bastian drove away from the hospital, happy to be out. Lukas pushed a button and let his window slide all the way down, leaning an elbow on the door. It was an unusually warm day in the middle of March, the temperature outside being nice enough that many people were finally opening their car windows to enjoy the sun. He watched the buildings that flew by as they drove away from the hospital.
It wasn’t too long of a drive to Lukas’ apartment building, which was located in the young and trendy Schwabing district. Lukas hadn’t had to search long for a place to stay when he moved from Cologne to Munich, in fact he’d had a potential place before he’d even started packing. The very first person Lukas had called when the transfer had been made official was Bastian, who’d been having dinner at his apartment with Daniela and two of her friends, Anna and Lena, girls she had met while attending the University of Munich studying business. She and Lena had been in the same program since they’d started and as Lena and Anna had been childhood best friends, Daniela was soon introduced to the other girl. They were her closest friends and she often had them over.
When Bastian announced to the girls that Lukas would be moving to Munich, Lena had immediately mentioned that the apartment next to theirs was being vacated in the coming month. Their building wasn’t too far from Bastian and Daniela’s, so the opportunity for Lukas to live within walking distance of his best friend was perfect. The girls had spoken to the owner, who had just been about to list it on the market, and as the older man had always had a soft spot for his young neighbours, he had agreed to hold off on listing it to allow Lukas to see it first. When he’d arrived in Munich on the apartment hunting trip and visited the building, he’d been pleased enough to buy it without bothering to look at anything else.
Things had worked out perfectly and he’d soon become good friends with the girls as well and the five often had dinner together, played cards, discussed current events… The last usually ended up just being the girls talking, as Bastian and Lukas often decided to challenge each other to games on the Playstation instead, which led to the girls teasing them about being dumb athletes who couldn’t talk about anything other than football. The boys took it all in stride though, and often joked that they could talk about video games and cars too. It was your typical friendships between young men and women.
Bastian drove into the visitor parking lot for the building, finding a spot and pulling his car in. He let the car idle for a moment, during which Lukas put his window back up. They looked at each other and smiles broke on both of their faces. “We’re home!” Bastian exclaimed as he shut off the car and opened his door. He got out and shut his door, making his way over to the passenger side. Lukas had undone his seat belt and pushed his door open, turning in his seat to sit with his legs dangling out of the door. Bastian pushed the door back as far as it went and took Lukas’ hands, pulling him up and out of the car. Lukas had regained some of his balance, being able to stand on his own now with no problem. He had to lean on something when he walked though, as it was very easy for him to lose his balance then. He usually ended up leaning on Bastian, who was always there to support him.
They slowly made their way into the building, Lukas having some trouble with the few steps at the front. He didn’t mind walking so much anymore, but he absolutely hated stairs and avoided them at all costs now. He knew he’d have to tackle them eventually, but for now they made him trip too easily so he preferred to stay away. They took the elevator up to the seventh floor where his apartment was, getting off and walking down the familiar hall. His apartment was at the end, a quite spacious three bedroom unit that had been decorated in a sleek and sophisticated style. He wasn’t a fan of clutter and tried to keep things as neat and organized as possible, but he didn’t always accomplish that goal and sometimes got too lazy to bother with tidying everything up.
Bastian, who’d been holding on to Lukas’ things throughout the week, fished his keys out of his jacket pocket and slid them into the lock, turning it and opening the door. It was definitely nice to be out of the hospital. He walked into the apartment and took his shoes off, turning back around to watch as Lukas followed him in, his hand resting on the wall as he took the few steps inside. He leaned against the wall and looked at Bastian, a smile on his face. “Schweini?”
Bastian looked at him, wondering what he was going to say. “What?”
Lukas took a moment before he replied, looking as though he was trying to keep from laughing. “Take my shoes off?” They both laughed as soon as the words were out and Bastian asked him why he couldn’t take his own shoes off - he’d put them on after all. Lukas just smiled again, that cute little boy smile that got him anything he wanted. “Was sitting. Now-where to sit, and don't w-walk on carpet, shoes.”
Bastian rolled his eyes and huffed before kneeling down in front of Lukas. “I swear you and your stupid carpet.”
“Expensive!”
“It’s not like your shoes are even dirty.”
“Does not m-matter.”
“You better not tell anyone about this.”
Lukas just grinned and raised his leg as Bastian slipped one shoe off. “You w-wanted, this.”
“Yeah well I didn’t think that would include your shoes.” Bastian really didn’t mind, he was just taking the opportunity to tease Lukas. Lukas put his right leg down and lifted the left, waiting until Bastian took the shoe off before lightly kneeing him in the face. Bastian looked up at him in shock, wondering briefly if Lukas had actually meant to hit him or not. It was obvious from the grin on his face that he had. “What was that for?”
Lukas crossed his arms and stared down at Bastian. “When y-you shoved, ch-chicken, in me. And ice cream.” They both started laughing at the comment, and Bastian stood back up.
“Oh yeah, I guess I kinda had that coming.” He put his arm around Lukas’ shoulder and led him into the living room area, which was the first room you entered in the apartment. The kitchen and bedrooms branched off from it. “So, where to first?”
“Bedroom.” They walked into Lukas’ master bedroom, which was at the end of the hallway to the left. It was a nice sized room with its own bathroom and balcony. One of Lukas’ first upgrades to the apartment had been to have a Jacuzzi bathtub installed in his bathroom, which he quite enjoyed sinking back in after practice to soothe his aching body. But for now his destination was his bed. He sank down onto it, crawling up to lay his head on his pillows. It was definitely much more comfortable than the hospital bed had been. He stared up at Bastian, who was standing by the bed looking down at him and smiling. He grinned back at him and told him to go make some lunch.
Bastian picked up a pillow and threw it at Lukas. “You’re welcome, for bringing you home!” He laughed and squeezed Lukas’ outstretched leg before heading off to the kitchen. He was hungry after all and Lukas probably wanted a moment to fully unwind and enjoy being back in his apartment. So Bastian looked around his best friend’s kitchen, deciding to go the safe route and just cook a pizza. He set the oven and then walked over to the main balcony off from the living room. One time when he’d stayed over at Lukas’ after a night out at P1, one of the hottest clubs in Munich, with their Bayern team mates, he and Lukas had eaten breakfast on the balcony. It had really been closer to lunch, but they’d still eaten breakfast foods instead.
He opened the door and stepped outside, leaning on the railing and looking down into the street below. Lukas had really lucked out with his apartment. It was in an excellent area and had a nice view from the front. Plus Bastian liked that it was so close to his place. He went back inside and checked on the oven, seeing that it was still heating up, and picked up the phone and called Dani. She was home, having just gotten in from her morning class.
“Is he settling in well?” Bastian had told Daniela about his intentions of staying with Lukas last night when he’d gotten in from the hospital, wondering how she would take it. She was usually pretty understanding about things, more so than the majority of women he knew, but he was still worried that she might be upset about it. To his relief, she hadn’t really had a problem with it.
“Let’s see, he kneed me in the face and told me to make him lunch. I think I should have left him at the hospital.” He sank down onto Lukas’ couch, leaning back against the arm rest and stretching his legs out.
“I’m sure you deserved it; don’t lie, Bastian.” Daniela laughed at the thought of Lukas finally starting to repay Bastian for all of the teasing and harassment he’d endured in the hospital.
“Hey, whose side are you on?” Bastian did his best to sound offended and hurt.
“Don’t be a whiner, Basti. You know I love you, but you did tease him an awful lot at the hospital.” Daniela had been present on more than one occasion when such teasing had occurred and she’d always come to Lukas’ defense.
Bastian grinned and laughed himself. “Yeah but I was just doing my job. They told me I should keep things as normal as possible, and Poldi and I tease each other all the time.”
“Of course you do, you’re such dorky little boys.” Daniela laughed as Bastian acted offended yet again. “Oh by the way, can you call Robert? I think he's been trying to call you since yesterday, and since he couldn't get a hold of you he decided to call me.”
Bastian winced, feeling kind of bad. He had been purposefully ignoring his agent for the past two days, and he wasn't shocked to hear that Robert had called Daniela to hunt him down. “Yeah, sorry he called you. I promise I'll talk to him.”
“Good, because he sounded pretty stressed out. I don't think he's your biggest fan right now,” she teased him.
“Yeah, I know, I'm a horrible client. That's what he gets paid for though, dealing with guys like me.” They talked for another few minutes until the oven dinged and Bastian said he had to go and cook the pizza. Daniela told him she would be by the following day after she finished work to make them dinner, Bastian said he was looking forward to that, and they said ‘I love you’ before hanging up. He set the phone down and walked over to the counter, slipping the pizza into the oven and setting the timer for twenty minutes.
He wandered back into Lukas’ room, seeing him still laid out on his bed. Bastian walked over and joined him, lying on his stomach beside Lukas.
Lukas looked at him and smiled. “Lunch ready?”
Bastian looked at him confusedly. “What lunch?”
Lukas laughed. “Heard it go ding. What did y-you m-make?”
Bastian caved. “Pizza, but I didn’t want to tell you because I’d been going to eat it all myself.”
Lukas pouted and looked away at the wall. “Should have got, an-nother nurse.”
Bastian laughed at him and slid closer, until he was leaning up on his elbow and his head was just above Lukas’. “You don’t mean that.” He slid his other hand across his friend’s chest, lightly brushing Lukas’ cheek before pinching it. “We already went over this last night. I’m staying with you until you’re all better.”
Lukas smiled and turned over on his side so he could look at Bastian. “Perfect reason to better, kick y-you out.” He grinned and they both laughed. Things were starting to get back to normal already, with Lukas starting to tease Bastian back just as much as he received it from him.
“Come on, the pizza should be ready by the time you make it out to the kitchen.” He helped Lukas up from the bed and into the kitchen, where they sat on stools at the counter, eating pizza. The rest of their evening was just spent relaxing on the couch, watching movies and eating popcorn. It was nice, only the two of them with no fear of interruption or interference. As it got later into the evening, Lukas started yawning, the tell-tale sign that his body was getting tired more quickly than he wanted it to. Bastian asked him if he wanted to go to bed and Lukas said no, that he’d rather stay out here until he fell asleep. Bastian had been tempted to tell him that he was going to let him sleep on the couch and he’d take Lukas’ bed, but he decided not to. He’d teased his best friend enough for one day.
So instead he put a pillow on his lap and told Lukas to lie down. With a grin Lukas did just that, resting his head in Bastian’s lap on the soft pillow. Bastian picked up the blanket that Lukas kept on the chair next to the couch and threw it over the other boy, telling him to sleep if he was tired, and that he would make sure Lukas got in to bed once he himself was ready to go. Lukas smiled at him and told him that he was the greatest best friend in the world, then yawned again and closed his eyes.
Bastian laid a hand on Lukas’ head, his fingers very gently rubbing over his hair and the back of his neck. His other arm was lying over Lukas’ chest, where Lukas had wrapped his own arms around it. He had fallen asleep very quickly, as though all he’d been waiting for was for Bastian to tell him to sleep. So they remained there for another two hours, until Bastian was starting to feel tired himself. He clicked off the TV and slid his legs to the floor, shaking Lukas a little. “Come on, Lukas; time to get you to bed.” He slid out from under him, standing up in front of the couch and stretching for a moment. Lukas muttered something Bastian didn’t understand, and Bastian pulled him up into a sitting position. He didn’t want to really wake Lukas up after all, so he kneeled in front of him and pulled him forward so he was slumped onto his back, and after making sure Lukas’ arms were in front of him Bastian hooked his arms around Lukas’ legs and stood up, carrying the other boy into his room on his back.
He very gently put Lukas on the bed, and then proceeded to strip him of his shirt, pants and socks, leaving him only in his underwear, which was how Lukas preferred to sleep. He’d rather have blankets piled on top of him then wear any real clothing to bed. Bastian pulled back the covers on his bed and tucked Lukas into them, pulling them back up over his body to just under his chin. He sat on the bed for a moment, his hand playing with Lukas’ ear. He leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead, the way he’d often done in the hospital. “Goodnight, Lukas.”
He left the bedroom and walked down the hall in the other direction toward the guest room where he was going to stay. He sat down on the bed and picked up his cell phone, checking it for any messages. He saw the five missed calls from his agent, Robert, and for that he felt grateful at the moment. He wasn't sure if he wanted to hear Robert's news, even though he knew he would have to eventually. He'd also missed a call from his brother Tobias. Without giving a thought to the late hour Bastian dialed his brother's number, hoping he wasn't in bed yet. It was answered after four rings.
“Basti, you fuck, don't you know it's rude to call people after 11?”
Bastian grinned and leaned back against the wall. “But you're family, so it's okay. I just noticed I missed a call from you earlier, wanted to make sure it wasn't anything important.”
Tobias sighed into the phone. “You didn't even bother listening to your voice mail, did you?”
“Nope,” he answered, “I think I have a message or two from Robert and I don't really want to listen to them before going to sleep.”
“How mature of you,” Tobias answered sarcastically. “I was calling to talk to you about this situation, though. Dani told me that you'd decided to stay with Lukas now that he's out of the hospital. Are you sure you want to do this? I can't imagine Bayern will be happy with you for taking even more time off.”
Bastian shrugged though Tobias couldn't see him. “Don't care. If it was anyone else, it would be different. But it's Lukas, Tobi. You know he's my best friend. I'm staying with him until he's better.”
“I know,” Tobias was quiet for a moment before continuing. “Is he worth risking the wrath of Beckenbauer and Magath, though? I know you like to think you enjoy some lofty privileges with your club-”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Bastian couldn't help the outburst, feeling suddenly annoyed with his brother.
“Oh come on, don't be like that. You're a big internationally known superstar, who's grown up through the system with Bayern. You think they owe you this time off. You think they'll accept you back with open arms after you make it clear that the club is not your top priority. Don't get pissed off with me for saying it, Basti. I'm sure you'll be hearing it soon enough.”
Bastian was silent, torn between hanging up on his brother and worrying that what he said was right. He did expect to be able to take this time off without repercussion, didn't he? He thought he'd earned it? It wasn't worth it to be angry with Tobias for speaking the truth. “What do you expect me to do, though? I won't be able to concentrate on football until I know he's better. When he can stay at home by himself, I'll come back. When he doesn't need me anymore, then I can go back to football.”
“And it doesn't matter to you if your club needs you?” Tobi asked, still pushing the matter.
Bastian tried not to be annoyed. “They have other players, Tobi. They don't need me.”
“Exactly, and you'd better remember that.” There was silence for a few seconds as Tobias let his words sink in with his younger brother. “Anyway, that's all I wanted to say. I'm just worried about you, that's all. I don't want to see your career suffer because of this.”
“It won't suffer, Tobi. What's the worst case scenario, anyway? Bayern get pissed and cut my contract? I'm not worried, there are plenty of clubs in Europe who would love to sign me.” He tried to infuse as much confidence into the comment as possible.
“You can't fool me, Basti, I'm not your older brother for nothing. You love that club, do you really want to be let go and forced to play somewhere else?” Bastian refused to answer the comment, but Tobias knew what his answer would be anyway. “Just be careful not to burn any bridges, Basti.”
“I'll be careful, Tobi. You don't have to worry about me, I can manage my career.”
Tobias laughed before answering. “I know, but no matter how successful of a footballer you are, you're still my little brother, and I still worry about you.”
“God, you sound like mom,” Bastian teased his brother, though it truth it was nice to know that Tobias was still looking out for him. “I promise I'll talk to Robert first thing tomorrow and make sure Bayern aren't thinking of cutting me.”
“Good, I'll call you in the afternoon to make sure you talked to him.”
“Good night, Tobi. Tell that whore you live with I said hello!” He grinned as he made the comment, joking of course. He liked his brother's wife.
“Well, tell that simpleton you're currently shacked up with that I said hello, and I'm not talking about Dani!” Tobi teased back.
“Oh, that's cold. Talk to you tomorrow, Tobi.”
“Later, loser.”
Bastian grinned as he shut off his phone. He always enjoyed talking to his brother, even if the conversations sometimes took unhappy turns. Tobias was always able to infuse enough humour into his lectures that Bastian listened to him, even when he didn't want to.
The few things the boys had with them in the hospital were packed in Bastian’s bag and they were now having one final talk before Lukas would be released. Each of the therapists gave Lukas a package detailing the exercises they wanted him to do at home, telling him that he would be expected to do the work on his own every day and they would know during their weekly appointments if he hadn’t been keeping up. Bastian promised to make sure he did his homework, grinning when Lukas glared at him for the comment.
There was paperwork to be filled out and signed, which Bastian had to do as Lukas still couldn’t write. Once all the necessary details were taken care of, the therapists all in turn congratulated Lukas on the progress he’d made so far. They started to leave the room until only Katya, the occupational therapist, was left. She smiled at the boys and leaned against the wall. “I bet you’re awfully glad to be getting out of here finally, aren’t you?” She winked at the both of them. “Don’t forget I’ll be dropping by on Sunday, likely sometime around eleven-ish. I don’t usually make house calls, but I have to admit that the unprofessional side of me is just dying to see where you live.”
Bastian grinned at the comment, nudging Lukas. “Looking for stories to tell her friends, I bet.” He looked back at Katya and raised one eyebrow. “You’re not going to steal a pair of his underwear, are you?” Lukas looked at Bastian, shocked disbelief on his face. Bastian ignored him.
Katya, however, looked thoughtful. “Well, I wasn’t going to, but now that you’ve put the thought into my head…” She paused for a moment and laughed at Lukas’ expression of disbelief. “Well then, on that note I should get going before I say anything else that could get me fired.” She laughed and hugged them before leaving the room.
Now it was the two friends, alone and ready to go home. Bastian looked at Lukas, a very happy smile on his face. “I suppose we should go, then. Unless you want to stay for a bit longer?” Lukas shook his head and uttered a very firm ‘no’ before sticking his arm out. Bastian linked his arm through Lukas’, his bag hoisted over his other shoulder. They started making their way to the front of the Schwabinger Hospital, a slow process at Lukas’ pace, but Bastian was just happy his friend was walking again. They received quite a few stares as they entered the main reception area of the building, everyone recognizing them.
Lukas’ concussion had been huge news in the German media and there had been a rather large outpouring of support from fans all over the country. Munich citizens, of course, were quite anxious for the young star to recover. So it was amidst many open mouthed stares and excited whispers that the pair headed for the exit. Bastian thought it was nice and touching, since he actually looked around at the faces and saw all of the happy, tear-filled expressions.
Lukas, however, kept his head down and didn’t want to look at anyone. He was aware of the excitement he was causing at the moment, but he was far too embarrassed by it to want to acknowledge it. He just hoped no one would say anything to him, or, even worse of a prospect, ask for an autograph. What would he say? ‘No sorry, I can’t even hold a pen right now’? So he kept hoping that they could make it out of the building and to the car without anyone stopping them.
Unfortunately for him, his fans were too excited to see him up and leaving the hospital to stay quiet. The silence was broken by the voices of a few fans, two young girls and a boy. “We love you, Poldi!” It was as though the yelled comment of the kids suddenly allowed everyone else to let out the feelings of pride they were trying to keep in as they watched their much loved young hero on his feet again. The majority of the people in the room started clapping, and a few more shouts were made, including a “We love you too, Schweini!” which made Bastian laugh and wave at the girl who’d yelled it.
He could tell that Lukas wasn’t quite as happy with the response. Bastian leaned his head close to Lukas’, whispering in his ear. “Lukas, would you please acknowledge them?” He could tell Lukas was embarrassed. Bastian wished he wasn’t, he wished Lukas could be as proud of himself as everyone else was at the moment. But he wasn’t and that bothered Bastian. “Please?” He stopped walking, hoping that Lukas would do something to let his fans know he cared about their support.
Lukas knew he should be grateful. Really, he knew it. Being able to play professionally was one dream, but to do so as a popular player, to have the support of fans all over-- that was another dream that unfortunately not everyone got to experience. Right now he wished he was one of those players who didn’t get noticed. But he knew Bastian was right, he knew that he had to do something. So he turned around and waved, forcing a smile to his lips. He hoped it was enough.
Bastian was relieved when Lukas waved. For a moment he’d really thought Lukas wouldn’t acknowledge them; that he’d try and hide behind Bastian and refuse to greet his fans. Luckily though, Lukas had done what he needed to do and the wave was enough for Bastian to start walking again, leading Lukas out to the parking lot. The little wave had apparently been enough for the fans at the hospital, as no one followed them to the car. Bastian was quite grateful for that.
He got Lukas settled into the passenger seat of his car before slipping quickly into the driver’s seat and sliding the key into the ignition. The radio immediately came on, some rock song playing on Energy 93.3 that Bastian didn’t recognize right away. They were both quiet as Bastian drove away from the hospital, happy to be out. Lukas pushed a button and let his window slide all the way down, leaning an elbow on the door. It was an unusually warm day in the middle of March, the temperature outside being nice enough that many people were finally opening their car windows to enjoy the sun. He watched the buildings that flew by as they drove away from the hospital.
It wasn’t too long of a drive to Lukas’ apartment building, which was located in the young and trendy Schwabing district. Lukas hadn’t had to search long for a place to stay when he moved from Cologne to Munich, in fact he’d had a potential place before he’d even started packing. The very first person Lukas had called when the transfer had been made official was Bastian, who’d been having dinner at his apartment with Daniela and two of her friends, Anna and Lena, girls she had met while attending the University of Munich studying business. She and Lena had been in the same program since they’d started and as Lena and Anna had been childhood best friends, Daniela was soon introduced to the other girl. They were her closest friends and she often had them over.
When Bastian announced to the girls that Lukas would be moving to Munich, Lena had immediately mentioned that the apartment next to theirs was being vacated in the coming month. Their building wasn’t too far from Bastian and Daniela’s, so the opportunity for Lukas to live within walking distance of his best friend was perfect. The girls had spoken to the owner, who had just been about to list it on the market, and as the older man had always had a soft spot for his young neighbours, he had agreed to hold off on listing it to allow Lukas to see it first. When he’d arrived in Munich on the apartment hunting trip and visited the building, he’d been pleased enough to buy it without bothering to look at anything else.
Things had worked out perfectly and he’d soon become good friends with the girls as well and the five often had dinner together, played cards, discussed current events… The last usually ended up just being the girls talking, as Bastian and Lukas often decided to challenge each other to games on the Playstation instead, which led to the girls teasing them about being dumb athletes who couldn’t talk about anything other than football. The boys took it all in stride though, and often joked that they could talk about video games and cars too. It was your typical friendships between young men and women.
Bastian drove into the visitor parking lot for the building, finding a spot and pulling his car in. He let the car idle for a moment, during which Lukas put his window back up. They looked at each other and smiles broke on both of their faces. “We’re home!” Bastian exclaimed as he shut off the car and opened his door. He got out and shut his door, making his way over to the passenger side. Lukas had undone his seat belt and pushed his door open, turning in his seat to sit with his legs dangling out of the door. Bastian pushed the door back as far as it went and took Lukas’ hands, pulling him up and out of the car. Lukas had regained some of his balance, being able to stand on his own now with no problem. He had to lean on something when he walked though, as it was very easy for him to lose his balance then. He usually ended up leaning on Bastian, who was always there to support him.
They slowly made their way into the building, Lukas having some trouble with the few steps at the front. He didn’t mind walking so much anymore, but he absolutely hated stairs and avoided them at all costs now. He knew he’d have to tackle them eventually, but for now they made him trip too easily so he preferred to stay away. They took the elevator up to the seventh floor where his apartment was, getting off and walking down the familiar hall. His apartment was at the end, a quite spacious three bedroom unit that had been decorated in a sleek and sophisticated style. He wasn’t a fan of clutter and tried to keep things as neat and organized as possible, but he didn’t always accomplish that goal and sometimes got too lazy to bother with tidying everything up.
Bastian, who’d been holding on to Lukas’ things throughout the week, fished his keys out of his jacket pocket and slid them into the lock, turning it and opening the door. It was definitely nice to be out of the hospital. He walked into the apartment and took his shoes off, turning back around to watch as Lukas followed him in, his hand resting on the wall as he took the few steps inside. He leaned against the wall and looked at Bastian, a smile on his face. “Schweini?”
Bastian looked at him, wondering what he was going to say. “What?”
Lukas took a moment before he replied, looking as though he was trying to keep from laughing. “Take my shoes off?” They both laughed as soon as the words were out and Bastian asked him why he couldn’t take his own shoes off - he’d put them on after all. Lukas just smiled again, that cute little boy smile that got him anything he wanted. “Was sitting. Now-where to sit, and don't w-walk on carpet, shoes.”
Bastian rolled his eyes and huffed before kneeling down in front of Lukas. “I swear you and your stupid carpet.”
“Expensive!”
“It’s not like your shoes are even dirty.”
“Does not m-matter.”
“You better not tell anyone about this.”
Lukas just grinned and raised his leg as Bastian slipped one shoe off. “You w-wanted, this.”
“Yeah well I didn’t think that would include your shoes.” Bastian really didn’t mind, he was just taking the opportunity to tease Lukas. Lukas put his right leg down and lifted the left, waiting until Bastian took the shoe off before lightly kneeing him in the face. Bastian looked up at him in shock, wondering briefly if Lukas had actually meant to hit him or not. It was obvious from the grin on his face that he had. “What was that for?”
Lukas crossed his arms and stared down at Bastian. “When y-you shoved, ch-chicken, in me. And ice cream.” They both started laughing at the comment, and Bastian stood back up.
“Oh yeah, I guess I kinda had that coming.” He put his arm around Lukas’ shoulder and led him into the living room area, which was the first room you entered in the apartment. The kitchen and bedrooms branched off from it. “So, where to first?”
“Bedroom.” They walked into Lukas’ master bedroom, which was at the end of the hallway to the left. It was a nice sized room with its own bathroom and balcony. One of Lukas’ first upgrades to the apartment had been to have a Jacuzzi bathtub installed in his bathroom, which he quite enjoyed sinking back in after practice to soothe his aching body. But for now his destination was his bed. He sank down onto it, crawling up to lay his head on his pillows. It was definitely much more comfortable than the hospital bed had been. He stared up at Bastian, who was standing by the bed looking down at him and smiling. He grinned back at him and told him to go make some lunch.
Bastian picked up a pillow and threw it at Lukas. “You’re welcome, for bringing you home!” He laughed and squeezed Lukas’ outstretched leg before heading off to the kitchen. He was hungry after all and Lukas probably wanted a moment to fully unwind and enjoy being back in his apartment. So Bastian looked around his best friend’s kitchen, deciding to go the safe route and just cook a pizza. He set the oven and then walked over to the main balcony off from the living room. One time when he’d stayed over at Lukas’ after a night out at P1, one of the hottest clubs in Munich, with their Bayern team mates, he and Lukas had eaten breakfast on the balcony. It had really been closer to lunch, but they’d still eaten breakfast foods instead.
He opened the door and stepped outside, leaning on the railing and looking down into the street below. Lukas had really lucked out with his apartment. It was in an excellent area and had a nice view from the front. Plus Bastian liked that it was so close to his place. He went back inside and checked on the oven, seeing that it was still heating up, and picked up the phone and called Dani. She was home, having just gotten in from her morning class.
“Is he settling in well?” Bastian had told Daniela about his intentions of staying with Lukas last night when he’d gotten in from the hospital, wondering how she would take it. She was usually pretty understanding about things, more so than the majority of women he knew, but he was still worried that she might be upset about it. To his relief, she hadn’t really had a problem with it.
“Let’s see, he kneed me in the face and told me to make him lunch. I think I should have left him at the hospital.” He sank down onto Lukas’ couch, leaning back against the arm rest and stretching his legs out.
“I’m sure you deserved it; don’t lie, Bastian.” Daniela laughed at the thought of Lukas finally starting to repay Bastian for all of the teasing and harassment he’d endured in the hospital.
“Hey, whose side are you on?” Bastian did his best to sound offended and hurt.
“Don’t be a whiner, Basti. You know I love you, but you did tease him an awful lot at the hospital.” Daniela had been present on more than one occasion when such teasing had occurred and she’d always come to Lukas’ defense.
Bastian grinned and laughed himself. “Yeah but I was just doing my job. They told me I should keep things as normal as possible, and Poldi and I tease each other all the time.”
“Of course you do, you’re such dorky little boys.” Daniela laughed as Bastian acted offended yet again. “Oh by the way, can you call Robert? I think he's been trying to call you since yesterday, and since he couldn't get a hold of you he decided to call me.”
Bastian winced, feeling kind of bad. He had been purposefully ignoring his agent for the past two days, and he wasn't shocked to hear that Robert had called Daniela to hunt him down. “Yeah, sorry he called you. I promise I'll talk to him.”
“Good, because he sounded pretty stressed out. I don't think he's your biggest fan right now,” she teased him.
“Yeah, I know, I'm a horrible client. That's what he gets paid for though, dealing with guys like me.” They talked for another few minutes until the oven dinged and Bastian said he had to go and cook the pizza. Daniela told him she would be by the following day after she finished work to make them dinner, Bastian said he was looking forward to that, and they said ‘I love you’ before hanging up. He set the phone down and walked over to the counter, slipping the pizza into the oven and setting the timer for twenty minutes.
He wandered back into Lukas’ room, seeing him still laid out on his bed. Bastian walked over and joined him, lying on his stomach beside Lukas.
Lukas looked at him and smiled. “Lunch ready?”
Bastian looked at him confusedly. “What lunch?”
Lukas laughed. “Heard it go ding. What did y-you m-make?”
Bastian caved. “Pizza, but I didn’t want to tell you because I’d been going to eat it all myself.”
Lukas pouted and looked away at the wall. “Should have got, an-nother nurse.”
Bastian laughed at him and slid closer, until he was leaning up on his elbow and his head was just above Lukas’. “You don’t mean that.” He slid his other hand across his friend’s chest, lightly brushing Lukas’ cheek before pinching it. “We already went over this last night. I’m staying with you until you’re all better.”
Lukas smiled and turned over on his side so he could look at Bastian. “Perfect reason to better, kick y-you out.” He grinned and they both laughed. Things were starting to get back to normal already, with Lukas starting to tease Bastian back just as much as he received it from him.
“Come on, the pizza should be ready by the time you make it out to the kitchen.” He helped Lukas up from the bed and into the kitchen, where they sat on stools at the counter, eating pizza. The rest of their evening was just spent relaxing on the couch, watching movies and eating popcorn. It was nice, only the two of them with no fear of interruption or interference. As it got later into the evening, Lukas started yawning, the tell-tale sign that his body was getting tired more quickly than he wanted it to. Bastian asked him if he wanted to go to bed and Lukas said no, that he’d rather stay out here until he fell asleep. Bastian had been tempted to tell him that he was going to let him sleep on the couch and he’d take Lukas’ bed, but he decided not to. He’d teased his best friend enough for one day.
So instead he put a pillow on his lap and told Lukas to lie down. With a grin Lukas did just that, resting his head in Bastian’s lap on the soft pillow. Bastian picked up the blanket that Lukas kept on the chair next to the couch and threw it over the other boy, telling him to sleep if he was tired, and that he would make sure Lukas got in to bed once he himself was ready to go. Lukas smiled at him and told him that he was the greatest best friend in the world, then yawned again and closed his eyes.
Bastian laid a hand on Lukas’ head, his fingers very gently rubbing over his hair and the back of his neck. His other arm was lying over Lukas’ chest, where Lukas had wrapped his own arms around it. He had fallen asleep very quickly, as though all he’d been waiting for was for Bastian to tell him to sleep. So they remained there for another two hours, until Bastian was starting to feel tired himself. He clicked off the TV and slid his legs to the floor, shaking Lukas a little. “Come on, Lukas; time to get you to bed.” He slid out from under him, standing up in front of the couch and stretching for a moment. Lukas muttered something Bastian didn’t understand, and Bastian pulled him up into a sitting position. He didn’t want to really wake Lukas up after all, so he kneeled in front of him and pulled him forward so he was slumped onto his back, and after making sure Lukas’ arms were in front of him Bastian hooked his arms around Lukas’ legs and stood up, carrying the other boy into his room on his back.
He very gently put Lukas on the bed, and then proceeded to strip him of his shirt, pants and socks, leaving him only in his underwear, which was how Lukas preferred to sleep. He’d rather have blankets piled on top of him then wear any real clothing to bed. Bastian pulled back the covers on his bed and tucked Lukas into them, pulling them back up over his body to just under his chin. He sat on the bed for a moment, his hand playing with Lukas’ ear. He leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead, the way he’d often done in the hospital. “Goodnight, Lukas.”
He left the bedroom and walked down the hall in the other direction toward the guest room where he was going to stay. He sat down on the bed and picked up his cell phone, checking it for any messages. He saw the five missed calls from his agent, Robert, and for that he felt grateful at the moment. He wasn't sure if he wanted to hear Robert's news, even though he knew he would have to eventually. He'd also missed a call from his brother Tobias. Without giving a thought to the late hour Bastian dialed his brother's number, hoping he wasn't in bed yet. It was answered after four rings.
“Basti, you fuck, don't you know it's rude to call people after 11?”
Bastian grinned and leaned back against the wall. “But you're family, so it's okay. I just noticed I missed a call from you earlier, wanted to make sure it wasn't anything important.”
Tobias sighed into the phone. “You didn't even bother listening to your voice mail, did you?”
“Nope,” he answered, “I think I have a message or two from Robert and I don't really want to listen to them before going to sleep.”
“How mature of you,” Tobias answered sarcastically. “I was calling to talk to you about this situation, though. Dani told me that you'd decided to stay with Lukas now that he's out of the hospital. Are you sure you want to do this? I can't imagine Bayern will be happy with you for taking even more time off.”
Bastian shrugged though Tobias couldn't see him. “Don't care. If it was anyone else, it would be different. But it's Lukas, Tobi. You know he's my best friend. I'm staying with him until he's better.”
“I know,” Tobias was quiet for a moment before continuing. “Is he worth risking the wrath of Beckenbauer and Magath, though? I know you like to think you enjoy some lofty privileges with your club-”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Bastian couldn't help the outburst, feeling suddenly annoyed with his brother.
“Oh come on, don't be like that. You're a big internationally known superstar, who's grown up through the system with Bayern. You think they owe you this time off. You think they'll accept you back with open arms after you make it clear that the club is not your top priority. Don't get pissed off with me for saying it, Basti. I'm sure you'll be hearing it soon enough.”
Bastian was silent, torn between hanging up on his brother and worrying that what he said was right. He did expect to be able to take this time off without repercussion, didn't he? He thought he'd earned it? It wasn't worth it to be angry with Tobias for speaking the truth. “What do you expect me to do, though? I won't be able to concentrate on football until I know he's better. When he can stay at home by himself, I'll come back. When he doesn't need me anymore, then I can go back to football.”
“And it doesn't matter to you if your club needs you?” Tobi asked, still pushing the matter.
Bastian tried not to be annoyed. “They have other players, Tobi. They don't need me.”
“Exactly, and you'd better remember that.” There was silence for a few seconds as Tobias let his words sink in with his younger brother. “Anyway, that's all I wanted to say. I'm just worried about you, that's all. I don't want to see your career suffer because of this.”
“It won't suffer, Tobi. What's the worst case scenario, anyway? Bayern get pissed and cut my contract? I'm not worried, there are plenty of clubs in Europe who would love to sign me.” He tried to infuse as much confidence into the comment as possible.
“You can't fool me, Basti, I'm not your older brother for nothing. You love that club, do you really want to be let go and forced to play somewhere else?” Bastian refused to answer the comment, but Tobias knew what his answer would be anyway. “Just be careful not to burn any bridges, Basti.”
“I'll be careful, Tobi. You don't have to worry about me, I can manage my career.”
Tobias laughed before answering. “I know, but no matter how successful of a footballer you are, you're still my little brother, and I still worry about you.”
“God, you sound like mom,” Bastian teased his brother, though it truth it was nice to know that Tobias was still looking out for him. “I promise I'll talk to Robert first thing tomorrow and make sure Bayern aren't thinking of cutting me.”
“Good, I'll call you in the afternoon to make sure you talked to him.”
“Good night, Tobi. Tell that whore you live with I said hello!” He grinned as he made the comment, joking of course. He liked his brother's wife.
“Well, tell that simpleton you're currently shacked up with that I said hello, and I'm not talking about Dani!” Tobi teased back.
“Oh, that's cold. Talk to you tomorrow, Tobi.”
“Later, loser.”
Bastian grinned as he shut off his phone. He always enjoyed talking to his brother, even if the conversations sometimes took unhappy turns. Tobias was always able to infuse enough humour into his lectures that Bastian listened to him, even when he didn't want to.