The sound of hacking pulled Raphael from his thoughts and he sighed, gazing down at the soup he had made. It wasn't the best, just plain chicken noodle soup. He wasn't exactly a chef, but it wasn't too hard figuring out how to throw the broth together and add the veggies and noodles.
The mutant sighed and walked through door and into a small bedroom. On the bed, huddled in layers of blankets, was the petite figure of Angelina. He could see some of her dark brown hair sticking out from under the blankets, causing Raph to smile.
"Oh, gee, I wonder where Angie could be?"
Muffled coughing could be heard deep beneath the blankets. The sheets moved a little and were pulled down enough to flash an annoyed, green eye. Raph sighed again and frowned, walking over to the bed.
"Come on, Angie. It's weird not having you crack some snarky remark at me."
The eye closed and he could hear a faint sigh. The mutant girl sat up weakly, her brown hair sticking up in places from all the sleeping she had been doing. She lowered her eyes to the quilt around her.
"Sorry, Raph. I'm just...really not feeling up to it."
Raph nodded and placed the soup awkwardly on her lap. She gazed down at it, confused. He looked away, feeling a blush on his cheeks.
"It's for you." He rubbed at his neck, awkwardly. He looked back and caught the amused look on her face. A blush rushed to his face and he quickly crossed his arms. "If you don't want to eat it, then don't."
Angie chuckled and tried to lift the spoon to her mouth. Her hand violently shook and the spoon dropped back into the bowl. The girl stared at it with a mix of horror and defeat. Raph's anger dropped. He felt bad for her. She was so fire-y, being sick really killed that part of her spirit.
Raph sighed and sat on the edge of her bed. He took the bowl and spoon from her. "Give me that. Jeez, you can't do anything on your own, can ya...?"
He took the spoon, gathered the soup and brought it to her mouth. The girl blushed heavily but welcomed the spoon into her mouth anyways. Raph continued to feed her like that in silence, both not really wanting to say anything that could make the situation more tense.
Halfway through the soup, Raph brought the spoon to her mouth but her hand stopped him. He looked up at her to find that her eyes have drooped and she looked pale. Well...pale for a mutant turtle, that is.
Raph took the bowl and placed it on her night stand. Angie sunk back into the bed and closed her eyes, her face flushed with fever. Sweat beaded her forehead and she let out a weak cough.
Raph watched her feeling defeated. He knew he shouldn't...but she was his girl. Sorta. He felt responsible about her and hated seeing her like this. It just wasn't...Angie. It wasn't. The mutant picked up the bowl and spoon and turned to leave.
"Raph, wait..."
Raphael turned, worry on his face. "Yeah, Ang? What is it?"
"Could you sing for me?"
Raph felt the blush on his face again, but it didn't matter if he became embarrassed over it. Her eyes were closed and she was probably too weak to make any kind of sly remark.
"Angie, I don't sing..."
"Please, Raph? You've sung to me before. I know it's not really your thing...but it would mean a lot if you would. Just this once."
Raph stared at her, thinking. She remained still, lightly breathing. He watched the blankets move up and down in a steady rhythm. For a moment, he wondered if she had fallen asleep. But when she cracked open an eye, he knew she was waiting for his response.
The red clad ninja sighed. "Okay. But just once..." He sat at the edge of her bed again and pondered the songs he knew. Only one came to his mind and he already was embarrassed thinking about it. Raphael inhaled deeply and began to sing before he could have any second thoughts.
"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,
You make me happy when skies are grey.
You never noted how much I love you,
Please don't take my sunshine away..."
He continued to sing, lost in thought. Raph didn't hate the sound of his voice, in fact, he enjoyed it. He wasn't great but he wasn't awful, either. He lost track of the time as he sung and was surprised when he realized he was still in Angie's room when he finished, forgetting where he was for a brief moment.
Raphael glanced down at the girl beside him and sighed in relief to find her asleep. He took the bowl and spoon and gently stood, not wanting to wake her. He walked towards the door and turned to look at her one more time.
Angie continued to rest peacefully. She sighed and turned in her sleep to have her back facing him. Raph smiled and turn to leave the room. As he headed for the kitchen, he found himself humming the tune to the song but didn't find the need to quit it in fear of his brothers overhearing.
Raph placed the bowl in the sink and let the water run, his thoughts going back to the sick girl down the hallway in her room. He knew she'd be okay, but it still freaked him out whenever she was hurt or sick like that. It was weird not having her running around with Mikey or cracking some kind of remark to an insult he had.
He realized how empty life would be without her around. How quiet things would be if he didn't have someone else to insult him back or be there to care when she kicked his butt in sparring.
He knew their lives were dangerous. Any one of them could end up dead while on a mission if not careful. And if a Foot member or Kraang bot didn't kill them, eventually sickness could kill them or even time.
Raph looked down at his reflection in the water that now sat in the bowl the soup had once been in. He didn't want to think about life without her. It was cruel. He took a sponge and began to scrub at the bowl, trying to banish those thoughts from his head. He silently prayed to any god that was willing to listen to keep her safe, healthy, and alive. For as long as possible.
"Please don't take my sunshine away..."