Disclaimer: I don't own the original TMNT, just all their wives and babies and such. J
A/N: For everyone that requested the series return. We will pick up a year after where we left our lovely family in "A Never Ending Bond" Chapter 15. This will be the 26th installment in the Bound series, but I'm dubbing this Volume 2, Issue Number 1. If you are just joining us, read the character/family map on my profile page. Thank you all for your undying support!
Kaz rolled over and slipped an arm around his wife. Ona smiled as she snuggled into him. His fingers slipped through her silky locks. "Morning, beautiful."
She giggled. "Good morning, handsome." There was a long moment of contented silence as they enjoyed each other's warmth and affection. As he continued to run his large fingers through her ebony locks, she considered bringing up a subject she'd been thinking over for some time. "Hey, Kazzey, I've been thinking about something."
"Hmm, what's that?" He murmured, still not fully awake.
"I've been thinking that maybe it's time we…had a baby." She felt him stiffen, the gentle stroking of her hair stilled almost instantly.
"I'm not sure I'm ready to talk about that." He said after a very long moment.
She scooted back and tilted her head up so she could see his face. "But-."
He frowned. "Aren't I enough for you? We're still young. We have plenty of time for that."
"Of course, you're enough for me." She cupped his cheek. "And a baby wouldn't change that. It would just-."
He pulled away from her and sat up. "I don't want to talk about it." He sighed. "I'm just not ready." He stood up and began pulling on his gear and mask.
Ona sat up as she felt a jolt of fear rush through her. Had she pushed too hard. Kaz was her anchor. He was her entire life. Her first memory was of him and he was in nearly every memory since then. "Kazzey, wait. We don't have to talk about it. Okay?"
He stopped at the door, his hand on the knob. He opened it slowly, glancing back at her over his shoulder. "I have to get to practice or Uncle Leo will be mad I'm late again."
"Actually, Leo isn't here."
Kaz stuck his head out the door at his dad's voice. He frowned at the sight of his father. It looked like he'd been up a while. "What do you mean he isn't here?"
Mikey glanced up from his phone, where he was standing in his own bedroom door. "April called Donnie about an hour ago, she fell in her bathtub. Donnie told her to call an ambulance and then he, Sarah, Leo and Jamie left to meet her at the hospital."
Kaz's frown deepened. "Is she okay?"
"Haven't heard much yet." Mikey stuck his phone in his belt. "Raph's going to handle practice this morning."
Kaz made a face. "Oh…"
"You got a problem with that?" Raph asked stepping into the hall from the stairwell.
Kaz shook his head. "Uh, nope." But that wasn't exactly the truth. Raph tended to push them a lot harder than Leo. He didn't pull his punches as much either, which meant there tended to be more accidental injuries.
Ona's warm hand touched his arm and he looked down into her slightly damp eyes. "Kazzey…"
He touched her cheek. He hadn't meant to upset her. "It's okay. I promise." He pecked her lightly on the lips. She caught his hand and opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a harsh cough. He looked up to see his father turn back into his bedroom.
Mikey sat beside Kala on their bed and rubbed her back. "You okay, babe?"
She coughed into her tissue again and then took in as deep of a breath as she could manage. "Yeah, I'm alright." He frowned, but wasn't sure what to say that he hadn't said already. The fact was something was going to have to give. He knew Kala didn't like Donnie fussing over her, but this cough had been going on for a long time. Granted it did seem to nearly go away at times. In the mornings, however, it always seemed worse.
Mikey glanced up to see Kaz standing in the doorway. His expression clearly asked, "She's still not feeling well?" The older turtle shook his head, letting him know that whatever was making her sick was still happening.
There was a heavy knock up the hall followed by Raph's voice. "Yoshi! Get your shell to the dojo in five!"
Mikey couldn't help the small smile. "You better move it. Don't want to make the sensei mad." Kaz gave a derisive snort, but headed for the stairs anyways. Mikey turned back to his slender wife. He pushed a hair behind her pointed ear. "I'll take care of breakfast this morning. Do you want anything special?"
She smiled, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her cheek against his chest. "Maybe some soup."
Mikey pressed a kiss to her brow. "Do you want me to bring it up here, so you can rest?"
She shook her head. "No, really I'm okay. I'll come downstairs."
His arm tightened around her. "Are you sure?" She nodded. "Come on then. Sarah is usually up a lot earlier than this to get started." He stood, pulling her up beside him.
They made their way to the living room to find Cat settled on the couch sipping coffee, while Katsu pedaled his tricycle around the large space. Mira and K-three were already in the dojo. Cat gave them a drowsy smile. "Hey, guys." She glanced towards the kitchen. "Do you need help with breakfast, Mikey?"
He chuckled. "From you? No way. Sarah'd kill me."
Cat glared. "My cooking skills have improved. Don't you think so, Kala?"
The Neutrino covered her grin with a slender hand. Mikey snorted. "Not enough to risk Sarah's wrath, not to mention Donnie's, if you destroy something in there."
"So, you're going to make breakfast all by yourself?" She asked incredulously.
"No, I can help." Ona appeared beside Mikey, making him grin.
"See? We've got this." He urged Kala to sit down and turned to sling an arm around his daughter-in-law. "Me and the squirt will whip something fabuloso up!" Ona giggled as they disappeared into the kitchen.
Cat's drowsy smile faded a bit as she looked at her sister-in-law. "You still not feeling very good?" Kala just sighed and didn't meet her sharp green eyes. "I didn't think so. Listen, take it from me. I should have told Donnie I was having headaches, I might have been able to prevent the aneurism from rupturing." She reached across the space between them and squeezed her hand. "We love you, sis, and we're worried. You know we'll help, if we can."
Kala slowly lifted her head. "I know. But it feels like such a stupid thing to worry about. It's just a cough."
"And mine was just a headache." Cat reminded her.
Kala sighed. "Okay, I'll talk to Donnie."
Cat's smile was now bright. "Good."
Upstairs, Yoshi yawned as he stepped into the hall and ambled towards the stairs. He paused to stretch as he reached them and a familiar sensation tickled him. He glanced up the stairwell to see Star. Her blonde hair was still slightly muffed and she was still wearing her pajamas. He smirked. He'd come to love seeing her in the mornings. She was obviously not a morning person, but forced herself up to have breakfast with them. He suspected it was for him mainly. "Mornin'."
She plodded down the steps, to stop just above him, so she was at his height. "Aren't you going to be late for training?"
Yoshi shrugged. "It's worth it to see you in bunny slippers."
She snickered. "You're going to have to run laps again."
Taking her hand, he pulled her down another step. "Like I said, worth it." Her pale blue eyes slid shut as he brushed his lips lightly over hers. His smirk returned as she shivered. "Don't you think it's worth it?"
She narrowed her eyes and grabbed his mask tails, pulling him into a firm warm kiss. "Totally worth it."
"Yoshi!" Cat's voice carried up the stairwell.
He let out a groan and rolled his eyes. "I gotta go. See you at breakfast." He started to pull away, but she tugged him forward one more time, to press another kiss to his mouth. This one sent fire through his body. He wanted to pull her into his arms and never let go.
She at last pulled away, releasing his mask tails. "Go on."
A broad grin spread across his face before he turned and took the stairs three at a time. His mother was standing near the bottom as he came flying off. "You're late!"
"I know!" He leapt over Katsu, dashing into the dojo. He was prepared for any punishment he might be dulled out. Because, it had been definitely worth it.
By the time breakfast was ready, Raph had received a text from Leo. April had fractured her hip in the fall and they were taking her back for surgery. He said they'd have to wait for her to get out of recovery, before heading home. He also said they'd be bringing April back with them.
"Kala and I can fix up one of the spare rooms on Leo's floor." Cat offered as they ate.
"She probably will not be able to climb the stairs though." Mira poked at her waffle. She was worried about her aunt. April was getting older. She was already in her seventies.
K-three rubbed her shell warmly. "We can carry her up there."
"Definitely." Yoshi quickly agreed.
"But what about later? She isn't going to want to be cooped up in that room all the time." Shinta cut a slice off his sausage.
Mira frowned thoughtfully. "You know, Dad's got the plans for an elevator in the lab. We just haven't gotten around to putting any of it into action."
"Well, this sounds like the perfect time. Why don't you two start working on it?" Raph pointed at Shinta. "You can use the runt, if you need help."
"Runt!" Shinta glared and Raph chuckled.
K-three smiled at the young turtle. "Actually, it would be helpful. The more hands we have the faster we can get it done."
Mira nodded with the same smile. "Yep, you can be our go-for."
Shinta frowned for a moment and then shrugged. "Sure, since it's for Aunt April."
"Well, if you're gonna take those two away from us. We'll need a hand." Kaz told Raph.
"Me and Mikey will come help out for now."
Beside him, Cat frowned. "I can still work on bikes, you know. It was my shop to begin with."
Raph squeezed her hand. "I know, darlin', but I'd just rather you not get stressed out. It's been pretty hectic out there lately." Cat frowned but complied. She knew he was just being overprotective, but she found it harder and harder to argue with him these days.
Mikey grinned. "Alright, sounds like we got a plan." He raised an eye-ridge. "And we didn't even need Leo to do it." Everyone laughed as they broke off to do their assigned tasks.
Kaz frowned as he watched Ona walk through the large work area of the shop, headed back to the front. Normally she would stop and say something to him or play with his mask tails, something that would just show she was thinking of him. She'd never flat out ignored him.
"You two fightin'?"
Kaz turned his head to see Yoshi watching him. He looked back at the bike he was working on. "No."
Yoshi snorted. "Sure seems like it."
"Why?"
Yoshi pointed at the Harley his cousin had been working on. "'Cause you been workin' on that same bike for over an hour and she ain't said word one to you this mornin'."
Kaz finally lifted his head to glare at him. "It ain't none of your business, Yoshi."
Something in his older cousin's tone caught him. Yoshi's expression softened. "You want me to talk to her?"
"No!" Kaz said sharply, then sighed. Yoshi was only trying to help. "Sorry, I'm just a little stressed."
Yoshi frowned, but his gaze shifted behind Kaz as Mikey stopped there. "Hey, Kaz, is anything wrong?" He eyed the door leading into the front office area. "Is she okay?"
Kaz stood, wiping his hands on a shop towel. "I just need to talk to her."
Mikey watched his son stroll to the door and glance at the monitor to make sure there were no customers out there before opening the door and stepping through. Mikey glanced down at Yoshi and the younger turtle shrugged. He had no clue what was going on. A moment later, Star came through the door.
Yoshi raised an eye-ridge. "They kick you out?"
She shook her head. "Nope, just didn't want to be in there. You can cut the tension with a knife."
Yoshi smirked. "Then come here and let me show you what I'm doin'. You need to learn this stuff."
Star sauntered over as Mikey went back to what he was doing. She sat on the floor beside him. "Why do I have to learn to do this? Ona doesn't have to."
"Ona helps out wherever we need her, but I have a feelin' you're gonna be in here with me most of the time." He gave her a sly smile.
She scooted a little closer to him, until their arms were touching. "I like the sound of that."
He grinned. "Me too."
In the office, Kaz took Ona's hands in his. "I'm sorry about earlier. I'm just…" He blew out a puff of air in frustration.
"Not ready." She dropped her eyes. "I understand. It's alright."
He lifted her chin to meet his eyes. "No, it's not. I didn't have to be so rough about it. It's not like I don't want to have kids. I do, just not right now." She gave a small nod and he pulled her into an embrace. "I'm sorry. Let me make it up to you. Let's go out tonight." He pressed a kiss to her brow. "Just the two of us."
She smiled slightly and slipped her arms around his neck. "Oh, Kazzey…"
He let out another shuddering breath, burying his face in her dark locks. "I love you, babe, and I want to make you happy."
"I love you too. And you do make me happy every day." She turned her head to press a kiss along his jaw. She hadn't been angry with him, just very confused. She'd thought it was time they took the next step. And sharing their love with a little one, just seemed like the right next step. She sighed, tightening her grip on her spouse. But she'd rather have Kaz than lose him over something like this. "All I need is you."
It was very late in the afternoon, when Leo, Jamie, Donnie, and Sarah returned with April. The surgery had gone very well, but she still needed help as they crossed the dojo into the living room. "Sit here, April." Leo and Don lowered her onto the couch.
She panted softly, beads of sweat forming on her brow. "Thanks, guys."
Jamie sat beside her. "Is there anything we can get you, April?"
The older woman smiled a bit, still very tired. "No, thank you, Jamie. I just need to rest for a minute."
Cat came down the stairs, dusting her hands on her pants. She'd been helping Mira and K-three. "Hey!" She came around to sit on the coffee table across from their old friend. "How are you feeling?"
"Tired." April took in a deep breath and closed her eyes.
Cat squeezed her hand. "Well, we've set you up a room upstairs."
April cracked open an eye. "What? Why?"
Don and Leo exchanged a look and the elder brother moved to sit on the other side of their friend. "April, we've talked it over and we think it's best you stay with us."
Her brow furrowed and then she nodded. "Just until I get better."
Leo frowned and shook his head. "No, from now on."
April frowned as well. "You want me to move in? I think that should be my decision, don't you?"
"We're worried about you, April." Don said softly, drawing her attention. "You're all alone over there in your apartment. What if something else happens? What if next time, you can't get to your phone?"
Sarah placed a hand on her shoulder. "You're a part of this family and you know that we take care of our own. We want you here, so we can help you. Your hip replacement is going to take a long time to heal. You've done so much for us. Let us do for you for a change."
April sighed. As much as she hated to admit it, they were right. She'd been struggling on her own for a while. Here they had a household full of active young adults to help out. Plus, she would enjoy being able to see everyone all the time. Still it was hard giving up her independence. She'd held on to it for so long. "Okay, but what about all my things?"
Leo patted her hand. "You don't worry about that. We'll bring everything here."
Jamie nodded. "And if there is anything else you need, we'll get it. Okay?"
April gave a small nod, her eyes misting. "Thanks guys."
Cat grinned. "What else is family for, if you can't mooch off them once in a while?"
A/N: I will be posting a new chapter every Monday morning for a while. I'm trying to finish off "Between" and "Breaking Chains", then post may become more frequent with the series. Thank you all again for SO MUCH support! I am giving everyone the biggest tightest hug imaginable!