BUCKSHOT

written by mirxcls

A/N: Hello, I'm back again. I'm excited for my second fanfic on here, and knowing that I can easily write during the break loosens stress. So with that, I'll most likely be able to update these chapters pretty quickly. Enjoy this light-hearted, but intense fic idea that came to me during the finish-up of my last story. This specific fic won't be focused on ships, but the close friendships and family relationships instead. Besides, we all love to see the turtles having fun - and so does April and Casey.

Speaking of fun, I already have my next idea saved, and it's a sequel to a fic I haven't posted on here. But after I get through some more chapters, I promise I will post the very first fic to the sequel. It's old writing, but I guess it'll have to do.

Enjoy.

Love, mirxcls

Disclaimer: TMNT and all related characters are property of Nickelodeon. I only own the plot of this fanfic.

ONE | "Man, it's so drab!"

"Arghhh!"

With an annoyed growl, April O' Neil shot up from her place on the living room couch, squinting at the distressed figure in the darkness.

As her eyesight finally adjusted, she could clearly see the figure making a complete mess of the sleeping bag they had been given. April noticed one of their pillows had ended up on the other side of the room, and the other was being given rather a lot of, well, how could she say this? Terrified affection?

"Casey, what gives?" April whisper-hissed, her head buzzing with lack of sleep. She rubbed her temples with a sigh of irritation. "I swear, this will be the last time—"

But she damn well knew it wouldn't be the last time. Exhausted Casey Jones walking her home every night after sparring with Raphael, left him to beg for her place for a three-hour nap. The three-hour nap always turned into the whole night. And April was forced to put up with it all week. Of course, she could always sleep in her own room, but that would be leaving Casey alone. And deep, deep inside, she felt like she owed him because she felt bad.

While the invasion had taken place, and everyone had fled to the farmhouse, April was constantly remembering how cold she had been to Casey. Sure, her trust in him had faltered a bit, but his dad, his little sister—she knew they meant the world to him. And somehow, Casey had done a great job of putting his grief aside. And for what? Oh, God, she had felt terrible.

Whatever, it's just moral code, she thought. One more week. Just one more—

"Oh, God, no more rats!" Casey screeched, flailing in the sleeping bag once more. "Why, anything, just—" He paused to hold a breath, and then flopped loosely, snoring.

April didn't bother to give a reaction this time. And she knew that going back to sleep wasn't an option anymore, so she got up from the couch and trudged to the kitchen. Maybe I actually remembered to buy groceries for myself this time… wait, what time was it, anyway?

She went back to the living room and picked up her T-Phone from the coffee table. Five-fifty in the morning. Huh. Let's do breakfast, shall we?

Casey Jones let out a groan as a beam of sunlight hit his face, and eased open one eye. April had yanked open the curtains as soon as the sun rose, like she always did. The young vigilante opened his mouth to complain—but stopped as the fresh smell of eggs and pancakes filled his nostrils. "Whoa, Red, when did you start working at a buffet?"

"Good morning to you too," April called back sarcastically. "I'll cook for you this time, but it's not my job to haul your butt out of bed. Up and at 'em! Now!"

The constant smell of breakfast was enough to pull the vigilante to his feet. Soon enough, he was joining the redhead at the table, as she set down several plates of food in front of them. Casey wiggled his fingers, licked his lips, and picked up his utensils to dig in. But right before he could take a nice big bite, O' Neil stopped him abruptly, two fingers pinching into his wrist. Casey's sloppy cut piece of pancake slid off his fork. "Aw, Red, come on!"

"Yeah, um, we need to talk about your sleep screaming, Mr. Jones," April started, with a stern look. "I can't have this continue—you can't have it continue, either. What's your family going to say when you get back? And when's the last time you've talked with your dad?"

April could have been imagining it, but she thought she saw Casey's face flush. "It's okay, Red.

They'll just be happy to see me—and I'll be happy to see them."

A wave of silence swept over the breakfast table, and April regretted confronting him about the situation so early in the morning. But it couldn't have waited any longer.

"It's almost June," April finally spoke after a few minutes with an encouraging smile. She watched Casey savor his last pancake, chewing it carefully. She could tell he was thinking. "You haven't told me what you're gonna do yet. Are you leaving?"

He shrugged. "I dunno. Raph was asking me about that yesterday. I still haven't really figured it out."

"Are you just gonna stay with the guys?"

"Well, Red, that's probably the best thing to do at the moment," Casey said, frowning. "Man, it's so drab!" He pushed back his plate and let out a belch. Unfortunately, it wasn't as horrifying as Mikey's, April thought, rolling her eyes. She took both their plates to the sink, and began to zone out as Casey flipped through the TV channels.

Their junior year would end next Monday—and sometime over the break, April would need to start looking for colleges within reasonable distance. But the redhead soon found herself worrying about whether Casey's grades were actually stable. She oh so desperately wanted to ask if she could do anything to help, but assumed that Casey would feel embarrassed. Or worse, babied. April O' Neil hated being babied. She used to get babied by the guys, but now she was on her way to becoming a full-fledged ninja. Maybe Master Splinter sensed her emotions or something, and was the only person to actually do something about it. So now everyone kept their mouths shut, and she'd finally felt content.

April found it a bit amusing that Casey's schoolwork was actually how'd she met Casey. He'd been struggling in trig, and he supposedly thought that April was the perfect tutor for him—nevermind her flunking in the middle of the year. She remembered she'd been doubtful to help him, having experienced his poor manners, wild child attitude, and the too many uses of the word 'metal'. But for some reason, she had finally thrown caution to the wind—and now she found herself as an older sister figure. April could easily recall back to a few years ago, when she had felt hesitant to tutor Casey for the first time. But now all she wanted to do was help him improve.

April finished washing the cutlery, and dried her hands. Then she made her way back to the living room, finding Casey half-asleep on the couch. She let out a groan.

Pulling back her fist, she slugged him not too soft, and not too rough. But the action jolted him awake. "Ow!"

"Go wash up. Now," April told him sternly, with a hand on her hip and a warning glare. Maybe she was more of a mother figure. Oops. "I bought a new toothbrush for you last night. Go brush those pearly whites of yours." Even though she was bringing out her sarcasm, she had tried her best to muffle up 'pearly whites'.

But of course Casey Jones heard—and he flashed her his gap teeth grin before he trudged off to the bathroom.

A few seconds later, the vigilante came out with his new toothbrush in his mouth, toothpaste foam already forming. "So, Red," he started, enthusiastically. "Any special event I should know about?"

April raised her eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, today we could have just stayed inside and chilled. But you're acting like we're going to some spoiled kid's birthday party," Casey pointed out, taking out the toothbrush.

O' Neil couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Casey, you know I can't slack. This whole kunoichi thing is draining me to the core, but Master Splinter would find my so-called great potential greatly disappointing."

Casey sighed and leaned against the wall. "So where we headin'?" he asked.

"Underground, idiot."

April looked on as Casey's dull eyes lit up—and a wide smile made its way onto his messy foam-stained lips.

Me too, Jones.