How do I get myself into these situations? Desi asked herself as she stood in an alley, waiting for Raph's signal. Normally, Raph would not have let her be involved in their missions; but for once, this mission involved a skill that none of the boys had - feminine charm. There had been a serial creep going around to the bars around Desi's neighborhood and drugging women at each one. None of the women had reported the issue to the NYPD due to the department's track record with these types of assault cases. The only reason the boys had taken this issue into their own hands was because of a conversation Desi had overheard in one of her classes. A group of girls had been talking about some of their friends who had been targeted by this Serial Creep. Desi had whipped around and made sure she gathered as much information as possible, knowing that the cops had not been involved. The girls had been shocked by Desi's sudden intrusion to their conversation but had given her all the information they had.
Now Desi was waiting in the alley next to the bar that Donnie had estimated to be the Creep's next target. Raph had adamantly protested her inclusion in the mission, but once Donnie had fitted her with a small camera, embedded into her necklace, Raph had finally agreed. She was waiting for a text from Raph to tell her that all four brothers were in position. As she waited, she fidgeted with her leather skirt and velvet tank top. Her black pumps were already starting to press on the balls of her feet in the worst way. Finally, her phone dinged with Raph's ringtone to indicate that they were ready. Sliding her phone into the tiny pocket of her skirt, she set off.
The inside of the club was almost pitch black; the only light available was coming from the glow sticks that everyone had in their hands and around their necks. Making her way to the bar, Desi sat down and went to text Raph that she was in position. Before she could even pull up Raph's contact, a man slid onto the stool beside her. His presence made the hair on the back of her neck stand up and she quickly put her phone away.
"What's a pretty girl like you doin' here all alone?" The man called out to her over the music. Desi was never a very flirty person, it was a miracle that she had landed Raph with how bad she was at romance. Of course, she had forgotten this fact when she was fighting to be the bait for this mission. Now, her face heated up on its own accord and she shrugged, looking at him over her shoulder. She could see why he was drugging girls. His neckbeard alone repulsed her almost enough to make her jump ship. His shoulder length, brown hair looked wet from product and his black button up shirt had multiple stains along the front. Of course, she could only assume that this was the gy by the way he had zoned in on her, alone and scantily clothed, she was going with her suspicions.
"Just grabbin' a drink, hoping to meet some new people" Desi replied, basically shouting over the thumping music of the club. With her response, his hazel eyes lit up and Desi felt a surge of pride that she was doing her job effectively.
"Let me buy ya somethin' " The man offered and raised his hand slightly to call over the bartender.
"What'll it be?" The bartender asked, his voice already hoarse from trying to fight the music during the course of the night.
"Bloody Mary" Desi responded, a small smirk playing at her lips. If this went to plan, her drink wouldn't be the only thing that was bloody.
"I like your style…" The man responded, his sentence dropping off as an indication that he wanted to know her name.
"Debra" She responded as the bartender handed her the cup filled to the brim with the red drink. Desi took note of the fact that he had not ordered himself a drink and decided that she needed to turn up the heat a little.
"I'll be right back, can you watch my drink?" Desi asked, leaning closer to the man and scooting her glass towards him. He nodded wordlessly, obviously shocked at her sudden proximity. With that, Desi sauntered off to a corner she had scoped out earlier. She could see him, but he could not see her. Not even a second after she had posted up in her new spot, the man leaned over and squirted something from a small bottle into her drink. He took the straw of the drink and mixed it in, looking around to see if anyone had seen.
Thank god this is going to be a quick night, Desi thought as she pressed her hands to her cheeks. They felt like they were on fire from forcing herself out of her comfort zone. Thankfully, her red cheeks played well into her next move. She took a deep breath, pushed her plush breasts up further in her shirt and walked back over to the man with a purpose. He noticed her coming and quickly held up the drink to offer her a sip. She took the glass and slammed it down on the counter. She pushed herself in between his legs, a move that she could hear Raph practically screaming over, and positioned her lips so that they were next to the man's ear.
"Forget the drink, Shuga, let's get outta here" As she spoke, his scent overtook her and she almost had to pull away. He smelled overwhelmingly of Mac n Cheese and Axe cologne. His hands found her hips and he ground his body, pathetically, against hers. She rolled her eyes and pulled away, her hand trailing down his arm to find his wrist and begin pulling him away from the bar.
"They're heading our way!" Leonardo announced into the headset as he watched the video feed from Desi's necklace play on Donnie's laptop.
"Thank god, Raph's about to go Hulk on me" Mikey whined into the mic. The sound of Raphael's raging could be heard through the youngest's mic. Leo rolled his eyes and pulled Donnie away from the laptop.
"Let's go show this creep what we think of predators" The blue-clad ninja announced over the headset before they descended on the bar's roof.
As Desi walked out of the bar and around the corner to the alley, she refused to let go of the man's wrist. Despite her best efforts in trying to keep his hands off her, he had gotten in quite a few hits to her rear by the time they were out in the cool night air. Once they were in the alley, the man whipped Desi around by the hand she had on his wrist and pinned her to the wall.
"So, Debra, I can tell you like it wild. Let ol' Jakey show you just how wild I can be" He husked against her neck, the smell of Axe and Mac n Cheese even more overpowering now that they were outside. Desi suppressed a gag as he ran his tongue up the side of her throat and began to palm one of her breasts.
Any time now, guys; she thought with a huff. Not even a second later, the man who was lapping at her neck was torn away from her and pinned up against the wall by Raph's hand on his throat.
"What the fuck?!" Jake squawked out, his eyes bugging at the 6-foot turtle before him.
"Desi, we can handle it from here, thank you for your help. Mikey is going to take you back to the lair" Leo informed the blue-haired woman as she moved to make Raph loosen his grip.
"Desi?! I thought your name was Debra! You lying skan-!" Jake was cut off as Raph's grip tightened around his throat.
"Don't ya dare say anythin' else ta her" Raph growled as his hand moved back to pull one of his sais from its holster on his waist.
"Oh what? Are you her boyfriend?! Gimmie a break, freak!" Jake flung back at Raph, obviously not understand the level of danger he was in. As the whole alley began to radiate with Raph's anger, Mikey scooped Desi up into his arms and began to scale the building. Just as they got up over the ledge, Desi heard what she imagined to be the sound of a body being thrown at a dumpster.
"I thought I had trouble w-with girls" Jake called out from his new spot on the ground.
"This dude must want to die" Mikey whispered to Desi as they waited to hear the rest of the beat down play out. Raph didn't like when Desi saw him like this, but Desi knew she needed to stay to deal with the backlash when they got home. Her Raphie was tough on the outside, but words like 'freak' really got under his shell.
"Keep quiet, dirtbag!" Raph responded, followed by the sound of the sickening crack of a bone breaking.
"Ya know, I like bone fractures as much as the next anthropology major, but this is a little much for me" Desi pointed out quietly, her stomach turning as the sound played over again in her head. Mikey nodded and scooped her up again before taking off towards the lair.
By the time the brothers got back to the lair, Mikey and Desi were in their PJs and curled up on the couch. Mikey's fingers were lazily running through Desi's hair as they dozed and waited for the brothers to return.
"How'd it go, fellas?" Desi called out sleepily and nuzzled closure to her warm cuddle buddy.
"Fine" Raph responded gruffly as he stalked over to the couch. Desi looked up at her boyfriend as he drew closer. Before she could protest, he had slid his arms under her legs and back and lifted her away from her warm spot.
"Hey!" Mikey protested quietly as Desi groaned at the loss of warmth. Ignoring their complaints, Raph slung Desi over his shoulder and stomped off to his bedroom. Once inside the room, Raph gently put Desi down on the mattress before turning to undress.
"Raphie, what's wrong?" Desi whined, her tired brain having a hard time processing what was going on. She leaned back into the pillows and stretched before getting comfortable.
"Are you okay? That jackass didn't hurt ya did he?" Raph asked once he was undressed, as he faced the mirror in their room, Desi could see the concern in his eyes. When they made eye contact in the mirror, he looked away from her gaze. After being together for two years, Raph had learned that there was no benefit in putting his walls up around her. Despite this, he still had a hard time communicating his feelings.
"I'm fine, love. I took a hot, hot shower and I feel fine now" She responded, keeping her voice airy to make sure he stayed calm. It was obvious that something else was eating at him.
"Is that the on-?" Desi started, but Raph cut her off.
"I'm a freak! Desi, ya shouldn't be wit me! I-I … you could do so much better than me! Your sisters would actually have someone that they can call their brother in law. Someone who can get a job and make money a-and give you a family!" His shoulders were moving in tandem with his heaving breaths.
"Raph, there is nothing wrong with you. With us" Desi motioned for the angry turtle to sit down next to her. Instead, he started pacing and running his hands over his bare face and head.
"Yer family is going to be ashamed of me!" He retorted. Desi sighed, this was about her family. Not about how much better he thought she could do. In her honest opinion, Raph was better than any person she could find above ground. She loved his mutation, loved that he was so unique and strong. If her family was ashamed of him, which she knew they would not be, then that was their problem. The couple had talked about this before; about waiting a good while before introducing more humans into the turtles' lives. But Desi could tell that it was really starting to take a toll on Raph.
"Raphael, I know my family and I know that they support me no matter what" Her voice had hardened slightly to avoid any further argument about who her family was and was not. He let out a heavy sigh and plopped himself down at the foot of the bed, causing Desi to be lifted suddenly by the new weight.
"I just...I don't want 'em to react how that asshole did" his voice was barely above a whisper.
"That asshole thought he was about to get some and you proved him wrong. He lashed out at you because he thought you were taking me away from him." Desi said as she crawled over to her sulking boyfriend. As Desi began to rub at the tense muscle around his neck and shoulders, Raph nodded and let out a sigh.
"I-I'm just… scared" he admitted, the last word barely audible.
"Which is totally fine, my love. But I need you to trust me that my family only cares that you love and support me. They need to know that we are healthy and that we are a good team, nothing more" she whispered softly, beginning to pepper kisses along his shoulders and neck.
"Would you like me to arrange a family meeting?" She asked once she felt him relax.
"Soon, just us and them. My brothers can wait their turn." He responded and turned to plant a kiss on her lips. Desi smiled into the kiss and nipped at his lip playfully before pulling away.
"When I go home tomorrow, I'll set something up" Desi smiled and began to crawl back towards the pillows.
The next morning, Desi woke to a text from her parent telling her she needed to come home ASAP.
"Fuck, Raph. I gotta get home. Prince says its an emergency" Desi groaned as she pushed herself out of bed. Raph groaned and reluctantly let go of his girlfriend. She quickly threw together her backpack before giving Raph a quick kiss and heading back to her apartment.
The second she stepped into the main area, she could feel something was incredibly wrong. She could hear Prince's pacing against the wooden floor in her room.
"Mama?" Desi's voice shook slightly as she spoke. She had never felt this type of energy around her before and she was not a fan.
"Here, darling" Prince responded followed by the sound of her bed creaking under her weight as she sat on the bed. Desi followed the sound of her parent's voice. Prince was sitting on her bed and still in her pajamas. A half packed carry-on suitcase sat on the bed behind her.
"What happened?" Desi's voice was tight as she observed the state of disarray her parent's room was in. All her drawers were open as well as her closet doors. The clothes sat on the floor and around the foot of the bed. Those that she had decided on packing ended up being thrown into the carry-on haphazardly.
"Your sister's in the ICU in Houston" Prince informed her, the world's seeming to catch in her throat as she spoke. Desi's adopted sister Skeeter, as they called her, had moved down to Texas two years ago to go school in Houston and to be with her long-distance boyfriend. In recent months, Skeeter had become more and more distant from the sisters. She rarely texted them and if she did it was to ask for money. It wasn't like Skeeter to be so self-absorbed. Desi had tried reaching out multiple times a day; texting her about what was going on in her life like she always did. The blank look on Desi's face prompted Prince to continue.
"She is currently still out since the damage to her head was pretty bad. The nurse that called said she came in after a severe assault. She's woken up once, just long enough to tell the nurse to call us" Prince informed her, her hands running over her face.
"So what are we gonna do?" Desi asked, plopping down on the bed next to her parent.
"I was getting ready to go, but your sister reminded me that I have a performance tomorrow night. I can't go" Prince sighed and stood up before walking over to her suitcase.
"I'll go!" Desi announced, standing up quickly and turning to face her parent.
"Are you sure? I know how much you hate planes" Prince smiled softly at her as she began to unpack her suitcase.
"I-I'll do it, no p-problem!"
Prince smiled at her as she finished unpacking her carry-on.
"Here, take my suitcase and pack up for the week" Prince instructed her as she handed her daughter the suitcase. With a nod, Desi took off to her room and began to throw what she could in the small suitcase. Once she had packed a week's worth of clothes, textbooks, and toiletries. Prince had booked her a flight for six o'clock that night so once she was packed she sat down to call Raph.
"Hey P, what's up?" Raph answered after a few rings. She smiled softly to herself, he called her P when he was around his brothers. It was short for Princess, Puddin, and whatever other P words Raph could think of.
"I have to go down to Houston. Skeeter's in the hospital. I think her boyfriend put her there" Desi informed him.
"Should you be goin' down there? Without someone goin' with you? I don't wantcha gettin' hurt" Raph grunted in response.
"We're going to be in the hospital the whole time" Desi tried to assure him. She knew he wasn't going to accept that as a safe alternative, but she hoped he would drop it. She knew there were dangers involved in going to see her sister, but Skeeter needed her.
"Yer going to go no matter what?"
"Yep"
"Yer gonna be careful and call me every day?"
"Yep"
"Aight"
Desi smiled at her phone when he didn't press the issue further.
"My flight leaves at six tonight, I'll text you every chance I get" She assured him. No doubt, Skeeter would not be very talkative and she would have plenty of time on her phone.
"Aight, Imma keep ya ta that, P" Was his response. After a few more assurances and the phone number of the hospital Skeeter was at, they said their goodbyes and hung up.
"Who was that?" Prince asked as she walked into Desi's room with a brown paper bag.
"Uh, my friend from class. We were going to meet up later in the week to go over notes but I told him I could just text him." Desi replied, hoping her lie was enough. Prince gave her a knowing look that told her that she hadn't fooled anyone.
"I packed you a sandwich and some snacks for the flight. I know it's only a four-hour trip, but I know how you get when you're hungry" She smiled at her middle child, holding out the bag for Desi to take. Desi smiled and took the bag from her mother before shoving it in her backpack.
"Ready to head out?" Prince asked as she stepped towards Desi and smoothed her hair back.
"Yeah Mama, I'm ready"
