Title: There's Nothing to do Around Here!
Author: vashsunglasses
Rating: K+
Fandom: Ninja Turtles
Disclaimer: The TMNT belong to Mirage. The book "Secrets of Dysfunctional Families" was written by the Friels. What belongs to me is the plot line… and that's pretty much it.
Summary: "Secrets of Dysfunctional Families" One-Shot. Donny has way too much free time on his hands now that his brothers are helping out with the work load.
Important Note: I highly recommend reading my story "Secrets of Dysfunctional Families" before you read this. Otherwise you'll be left scratching your heads, wondering why everything is so strange…
Four Months After Splinter Left
He was bored. He was bored and he was beginning to regret giving some of his workload to his brothers. At least before everything changed he knew his place in the family. At least before he had never lacked for something to do.
"Hey Raph," Donny said as he walked over to the kitchen table where his older brother was doing the family accounting. "Need any help?" he said hopefully.
"Nope," Raph said in reply, not even looking up.
"Are you sure?" Donny asked.
"I'm positive Don-san," Raph said, marking something off of his list and making a notation in a notebook.
"Oh," Donny said, his shoulders slumped.
"Why don't you go bug Mikey?" Raph asked, giving his little brother a dark look that boded ill for any turtle who dared annoy him further.
Donatello walked away from the kitchen and towards the closed door of his lab, he opened it and peeked inside at his orange wearing brother for a moment, amused at the deep concentration on his face.
"Hey Mikey!" Donny said, walking into the lab.
"Oh, no you don't!" Michelangelo replied sternly, looking up. "You promised to let me do this experiment by myself."
"But Mikey, couldn't I just hang out here and watch-" Donny said.
"Nope," Mike replied, walking over to his brother. "If you hang around here, you won't be able to help yourself and you'll start doing work or something. This is your free time," he pushed his older brother out the door, "go have fun!" he ordered, slamming the door in Donny's face.
"Oh…" Donny sighed. "I guess I could ask Leo…"
He walked with shoulders slumped to the dojo where Leo was currently training. The shoji was slightly open and through the crack he could see the sweat glistening on his oldest brother's body. "Yuck," he thought to himself, "I'm not nearly bored enough to want to sweat like that by choice." He shut the shoji quickly in case Leo saw him and got any ideas about sparring.
He sighed, "So now what? What am I supposed to do now?" He thought for a moment, running his three fingered hand over his chin. Then he had it! "Hey! I'll just call April and Casey. I'm sure they're up for hanging out!"
Feeling slightly cheered he walked over to the phone and dialed their number. It rang and rang and rang. Nothing. "Damn!" he muttered, "They're not home. Now what?"
The vague thought of calling Splinter passed through his mind but he pushed it away violently. No way was he going to open THAT can of worms… Not for something as stupid as boredom anyway.
He walked over to the couch and slumped across it, picking up the remote and turning on the TV. After flipping through the channels for what felt like the one millionth time he shut the TV off again and threw the remote at it.
"This isn't fair!" he wailed.
"Shut UP!" Raphael roared from the kitchen, startling Donny half to death.
"MAKE ME!" he yelled back in reply.
"Don't make me go in there and KILL YOU!" Raph raged.
"PLEASE DO!" Donny replied at full volume, "AT LEAST I WOULDN'T BE SO FUCKING BORED ANYMORE!"
Raph was silent at that and Donny sighed with half felt disappointment. Even Raph's rage was better than the mind numbing emptiness he was feeling at the moment. He sighed and turned over on the couch, pulling a cushion down over his head and curling up in a fetal position. Perhaps if he pretended hard enough, he could obtain the comfort of being back in his egg…
He heard some shuffling in the background but couldn't be bothered to care. He was alone in his own dark little nest and screw everyone else.
Then the pillow was pulled away and light once again entered his world. He reached up for his missing pillow automatically and when he opened his eyes he saw his brothers looking down at him. They were smiling.
"Hey Don," Mikey said cheerfully, "You're taking up the couch, scoot over or something."
"Yeah, Don-san," Raph continued, "how are the four of us supposed to watch a movie together if you're being such a couch hog?"
"Does a 'Bill and Ted' marathon seem ok to you Donny?" Leo asked, holding up the DVD cases.
"Oh, um sorry…" Donny said bewilderedly as he sat up, scooching over to give his brothers room to sit down. "'Bill and Ted' sounds ok I guess…" he said softly to Leo's patently inquiring look.
Donatello pulled his knees up to his chest as his oldest brother started the first movie of the double-feature. He realized that what he had been feeling earlier hadn't been boredom after all, but loneliness. And as one of his brothers slung an arm over his shoulder he realized that while his loneliness hadn't gone away completely, it had lessened significantly… He leaned fully into his brother's one armed embrace and smiled slightly at the surprised grunt that he recognized as coming from Leonardo.
"Thanks guys," he whispered under his breath.
"Shush!" three voices whispered in return, "We're trying to watch a movie here!"