The sewers were cold.

How hadn't he noticed how freezing it was before?

He stopped running and caught his breath. His injuries had gotten worse and the cold only made the pain sharper.

Take it slow, he mutters to himself. One step at a time.

Right foot, left foot... right foot, left foot...

Everything hurt.

Right foot, left foot...

His head was throbbing.

Right foot, left foot...

His ribs were probably broken, judging by the pain they were giving him.

Right foot, left foot...

His chest was on fire and his leg, completely slashed open, felt like a dead weight.

Right foot, left foot...

That is, if dead weight is supposed to drag you down while hurting like hell.

Right foot, left foot...

God, he was tired.

Right foot.

Breathing hurt.

Left foot.

Since when was blinking so hard?

Right foot...

All he wants is sleep...

Left foot...

He can't give up!

Right foot.

He's going to see them again.

Left foot.

He's going home.

Right fo-Aaaaargh!

An agonized scream echoes through the sewers immediately followed by a loud thump.

God it hurts. He has landed on his crippled leg, while the blood dripping on his chest reminds him of the bullet that is slowly killing him.

He could tell he was bleeding too much, there was no way he was going back in one piece.

It would be so much easier to just close his heavy eyelids and give in to the darkness, the so wanted numbness...

"Raph! Get hang of yourself!"

Leo...?

"Is this what you wanted? Dying alone in the sewers, leaving us like that?"

It's so cold, Leo...

"Come on bro, giving up is not like you!"

Mikey...?

"Get up Raphael! We are waiting for you!"

Donnie...!

He shakily forces his body up. His foot is sending him strong bolts of agony, while the rest of his body is trembling. He is hurting too much to move and knows he's in no state of walking.

If he stays here, he'll spare them from all the pain of seeing him like this. He'll spare them from all the grief and sorrow of his death. Maybe they'll think he left. Maybe they'll...

"Get your ass up and come home already!"

No.

They deserve better.

Mikey deserves better than finding his rotting corpse being eaten by rats in the sewers.

Donnie deserves better than being tortured by all the what-ifs his mind will create.

Leo deserves better than living the rest of his life in guilt for letting him leave the lair that faithful night.

He tries to move forward but his body won't obey him.

"Raphael my son, we are expecting you for dinner."

Father...?

He takes a deep breath.

Step.

He is Hamato Raphael!

Step.

His body is shaking.

Proud son of Hamato Yoshi!

Step.

Tears of pain and sorrow have made it to his eyes.

Loyal brother of Hamato Leonardo!

Step.

Regrets on all the things he shouldn't have said, all the things he should have said, he should have done leave him momentarily frozen.

Forever loving brother of Hamato Donatello!

Step.

It hurts, it hurts, it's so cold, make it stop, make it stop!

Best friend of his brother, Hamato Michelangelo!

Step.

And he...

Step.

...is going...

Step.

...home!

A loud noise startles the three turtle brothers, who immediately turn to the door. They all stand there, eyes wide, paralyzed by the shock of the image in front them.

Raphael. His face is pale, his body is soaked in blood and his leg... God, his leg...

Before any turtle could react, his body collapses.

Suddenly everything is blurred. He doesn't feel the pain of his body crashing onto the floor.

He doesn't hear his brothers calling his name.

What he does feel is warmth, what he does hear is water dripping from the kitchen, the TV playing in the living room, and he is overwhelmed by how sounds he never cared to notice, now filled him with love and happiness.

He smiles and finally lets himself fall into the darkness.

He's home

I am back! This was a very quick one-shot in order to let you guys know I am alive. I will not go too deep into the reasons for my absence right now.

I hope you enjoyed this quick lil treat, and I will try to attend to my lingering stories over the course of the next few weeks. Thanks a lot for your support!

Reviews obviously don't make me happy and definitely do not affect my motivation for future projects!