"He what?!" I asked the principal in shock. The principal knew of our situation. Our parents' death, Leo leaving for work after school every day, and such, so when a talk was needed after school, I was the one who was called to his office. Especially if it concerned Mikey.
"Michelangelo got into a fight." The principal repeated.
I shook my head. There has to be more to this! This isn't like my baby brother! "Who started the fight?"
"Technically," The principal said, his hands folded on top of his desk, "Michelangelo did. But, as you know, Donatello, I am a fair man. I did see one of the boys push Michelangelo first, but Michelangelo did throw the first punch."
"But it must have been out of self-defense." I protested.
"Please, Donatello," The principal said, waving a hand down as if to tell me to calm down, "allow me to finish. I do not believe that Michelangelo would have acted out as such if he weren't provoked. Now since he was provoked, I do believe he did it strictly out of defense. But we both know that even if it is out of self-defense, the school will not allow me to let this go unattended. Your brother's a good kid, Donatello, but I'm afraid I'll have to keep him after school for two Wednesdays so that he can help clean a classroom."
"Yes," I said with a sigh, "of course."
The principal smiled sadly at me. "Well, the kids who provoked it get a good month of cleaning."
I smiled gently back at him. "That's good."
The principal chuckled before his expression melted to seriousness once more. "I also feel like one more issue should be addressed."
I looked at him in confusion. "And what's that?"
He sighed, his hands still folded on top of his desk, his eyes peering at me through his wire glasses. "I believe, along with Michelangelo's teachers, that Michelangelo has a condition called dyslexia."
I scrunch my eyes in confusion. "I haven't seen much of a problem. He doesn't ask for much help."
"Has he read to you or written in front of you?"
"Well, no, but-"
"What I'm saying is," The principal said as he took his glasses off of his face, "that his teachers have been monitoring the way he reads and writes. He reads his d's as if they were b's, and he writes the same way. And it's not just with d's and b's, it's also with m's and w's and other letters."
I furrowed my brow but nodded. "Ok. I'll talk to Leo about this. Both situations, I mean."
The principal nodded. "I know you will." With that he dismissed me, and I slung my backpack over my shoulder before walking out to the waiting room of the principal's office.
Mikey's eyes immediately directed towards me, his eyes glistening in the light a bit more than they should. He didn't speak, and neither did I. Was I mad at him? No. Was I surprised at him? Yes. Were we going to have a talk? Yes. But I wasn't mad at him.
His eyes shone brightly as if he would cry at any given moment. "Are you mad at me, Donnie?"
I took in a deep breath at the words my brother asked. I knelt down to Mikey's height on the bench he was sitting. I take his hands into mine. "No, Mike, I'm not mad. I'm just very surprised."
"I'm sorry, Donnie," Mikey sobbed, tears falling from his eyes, "but those kids were being so mean! They were pushing me, and I didn't know what to do! So I…so I…"
"Hey," I shushed as I brought him into a tight hug while he sobbed and cried on my shoulder, his voice whimpering and wavering, "don't cry. Everything's ok. The principal isn't mad at you either. He knows why you did it; he just can't let it go. You have to clean classrooms for two Wednesdays, but that's it. Those mean kids have to do it for a month." I soothed as I petted the back of Mikey's head as I gripped him tightly.
He sobbed loudly. "I don't like being stupid, Donnie." He sobbed into my shoulder. My heart broke.
"Mike. Mikey. Michelangelo. Listen to me ok?" He nods as he keeps his head buried in my chest, his tears still soaking my purple T-Shirt. "You are not stupid. You are very smart."
"But," Mikey sniffed, "those kids keep calling me stupid. I don't want to be stupid, Donnie. I want to be smart like you, Raph, and Leo."
Tears of my own welled up in my own eyes. How could my only baby brother think that he's stupid? "Mikey," I say, my voice breaking a little, "you are very smart. I know that you are."
"I don't feel smart." He whispered. I sigh as I shift him into my arms and sit on the bench, rocking him back and forth. I kiss his forehead gently.
"Mikey, picture this. There's a little boy who is the funniest, most creative person that I know. He draws so much and can make a game out of two sticks and a used piece of tape. But kids at school call him stupid, and he believes them. He calls himself stupid and thinks he isn't smart. What would you tell him?"
Mikey sniffs. "I would tell him that his family loves him very much, and that no matter what those kids say, that he's smart in his own special way."
I smiled down at Mikey. "Good, because that boy is you, Mikey. Just practice what you preach and you'll be golden," I felt Mikey nod against my chest. "Alright. You ready to go home?"
Once again Mikey nodded. I smiled and began to stand. "Good, let's go."
OoOoOoO
"He said what?" Leo asked with a crestfallen look on his face.
"Yeah," I said as I looked to Leo and Raph, "he told me that he didn't like being stupid. He said he wanted to be smart like us." I reported.
Raph growled. "We should have done something about those kids the first time they said something. Now they've gone way too far."
"Agreed," Leo said, dragging a hand down his face. "We need to talk to a principle about this. This is too far. Mikey is not allowed to call himself stupid. He is far from the word."
I nodded. "But that's why he got into that fight. Those bullies were pushing him, and he did it strictly for self-defense."
"And I believe it," Leo said, "but schools can't let any sort of violence go."
"And that's not it." I add.
"What else is there?" Raph asked, not wanting to hear more of the heart wrenching conversation.
I sighed, placing my hands under the wooden table of which my other two brothers and I sat at. "Principal Johnson believes that Mikey is dyslexic."
Raph stiffened slightly. "So he, like, sees certain letters backwards?"
I nodded side to side. "Well, technically, yes. It makes reading, and writing much more difficult."
Leo sighed as he glanced to the clock. I glanced to the clock as well.
11:04pm.
"Let's talk about this in the morning. It's way too late to be having this serious of a discussion. We'll talk tomorrow since it's a weekend." Leo said, rubbing his hands together.
Raph and I nodded.
"Donnie, Raphie, Leo?" Our eyes directed towards the wooden staircase with carpet padding.
"Yes, Mikey?" We all asked in unison.
He rubbed his eye sleepily. "I had a nightmare, can you guys sleep with me?" We all looked at each other, a small smile on each of our faces. Mikey didn't need the spoken word; he knew that by the looks on our faces that the answer was a yes.
He smiled back at us as he began to run to Leo's room, looking behind his shoulder to watch us run after him. I laughed at my brother's playful giggle as he jumped onto our oldest brother's rather large bed.
That's the boy who called himself stupid, I reminded myself. The little boy who wants all of his brothers to sleep with him because he had a nightmare believes that he is stupid. But that wasn't what I wanted to think about at the moment. Right now, I wanted to snuggle up with my little brother and two big brothers and just fall asleep.
And that's what we were going to do. That was exactly what we were going to do. I jumped onto the bed right after Mikey followed by Raph and finally Leo. Mikey's baby blue orbs were so full of life that it was hard to imagine the words that he had spoken just a few hours earlier.
I couldn't take it. I wrapped my arms around my baby brother tightly. And he melted into my embrace. He closed his eyes, a smile on his face, and he hugged me back as tightly as he could. Then Raph joined the embrace and Leo, too.
Leo had tears falling from his face, and, though he'd never admit it, Raph had tears welled up in his eyes. It's probably because it had just dawned on them both that our baby brother had called himself stupid.
"We love you, Mikey. So much." Leo sniffed as he clutched the small boy in his arms.
Mikey chuckled innocently. "I love you, bros, too." He said before a yawn erupted from his throat. I smiled gently at him as his eyes began to flutter shut. I yawn myself before snuggling under the covers, Mikey still in all of our arms.
Yeah, we'd talk about this in the morning.
OoOoOoO
"Mikey, can you read this to me?" I asked, Leo and Raph next to me. It was a simple book. The Cat in the Hat wasn't exactly too hard of a read.
Mikey furrowed his brow into one of concentration. "Donnie…" Mikey asked.
"Yes, Mike?"
"The words are all over the page. That's how they are at school. They look like they're floating all over the page." Mikey said, his brow still furrowed.
I sighed and looked to Leo and Raph; each of their gazes were sad and sympathetic. I looked at Mikey. "Can you at least read one page?"
Mikey looked at the page, his brow still furrowed, his eyes squinted. "Thing…one…anb…thing…tmo…"
"You can stop right there," I told Mikey with a sad sigh. He looks at me in confusion but places the book down onto the table. I take Mikey's hands into mine. "Mikey, I think I know why you're in special classes."
"Why?" Mikey asked anxiously.
I sighed as my grip tightened a bit. "Mike, you have a condition called dyslexia."
"Dys-what-ia?" Mikey asked, confusion etched onto his face.
"Dyslexia," I repeat. "Dyslexia is where the brain scrambles up words and makes it harder for the reader to read."
Mikey's face fell, his eyes glistening now with unshed tears. "So I really am stupid?" He asked, a crestfallen look pasted onto his face.
I sigh sadly and shake his shoulders. "No, Mike, this does not mean that you are stupid. It just challenges you a bit more than other kids."
Mikey sniffed lightly, a single tear falling from his face. "I don't want dyslexia, Donnie. Make it go away."
I frown, a tear falling from my own eye. "I'm sorry, Mike, but I can't." Mikey takes my hands off of his shoulders and buries his face in his hands.
"Why am I so stupid?" He asks through sobs. "I hate it so much."
My heart aches. My chest burns. I'm shaking I soon realize. My hands tremble, my lip is quivering. My eyes are glossy with thousands of unshed tears, and a lump has made its way into my throat, choking me so that I cannot breathe, let alone speak.
Raph walks up to Mikey and picks him up into his arms. "You are not stupid, Mikey. Do you hear me? I swear if you ever call yourself stupid again, I will beat you," Mikey tensed slightly at the words, and Raph sighed. "Just don't ever say that again, Mike."
OoOoOoO
"So we have the correct program right?" I asked looking at the robot that sat before me.
"We should." Damian signed.
"I don't see how we couldn't," Spencer said, "I mean, you and Cody are our best programmers."
"Well," I said looking at the tiny robot, "it seems to do everything that we need it to. I think we're done with it."
"Alright team," Cody said, clapping his hands together, "we've got the correct program down, and we're ready for the competition."
"Hello?" A small voice came. We directed our eyes towards the door, our eyes widening. A girl with long blue hair that curled at the end stood there. "Is this the Lego Robotics Team?" Her small voice asked.
"Well, uh," I answered walking up towards the door, "yes, but you aren't interested in joining, are you?"
"Actually," She said, stepping fully into the room, "I am."
"Well," Cody said, walking up to the girl and placing a hand against her shoulder, "then, you've come to the right place."
"Sweet." She said smiling. Something about her smile, though. She was wearing braces! She wore blue bands around the brackets as well. Her eyes were also protected by black rimmed glasses. For some odd reason, however, I felt unsure of her. Why would a girl want to join our group?
"We don't need any more members." I said sharper than I had intended.
Her face fell, her smile faded, her glistening eyes lost their shine. "Oh," She said, her voice full of sadness and disappointment, "ok. It was just a thought, I guess. I'll, uh…leave you guys to it." And with that she opened the door and exited.
Cody looked at me with scowl. "Dude," He said, a bit of anger evident in his voice, "what the heck was that? She just wanted to join the Robotics Team."
"Well," I said as I picked up the small robot, "I don't think we can trust her. I mean, who knows? This may have been just one big dare."
"It didn't look like a dare to me," Spencer told me as he neared me. "She looked really upset when you rejected her."
"Ok, I didn't do it to be mean," I stated. "I did it because I don't want any of us to get hurt. I mean, what if she's with a really popular clique and tries to hurt us or separate us or-"
"This," Cody said as he slung his backpack over his shoulder, "is not High School Musical, ok. This is real life, and we should have given her chance."
Ring, ring.
I sighed as we all began to file out of the room. "I'll think about it, but I'm not too sure about this."
Cody sighed, shaking his head. "Well, you better get sure." We then parted ways, Cody having gym class at this time and me having science.
Hopefully I don't run into that girl again, I thought a bit irritably.
Upon entering the science classroom, I look around the room. There's that girl again. Her eyes were downcast at a blank piece of paper sitting in front of her, her eyes were still empty. Ok, now I'm feeling a little guilty.
She then brought her pencil down onto the paper and began to make many marks. This went on for the next five minutes until the bell rang.
"I'm sorry, students," Our science teacher said as she poked her head into the room, "but there is a situation that I must take care of first." And with that she disappeared once more.
"So, uh," April O'Neal, the most popular girl in school, said, "Fang, was it? Whatcha writing there?"
I gulp. Oh no, this could get bad.
She looked up hesitantly and looked into April's eyes. "Oh, um, it's for my eyes only. I'm sorry." She said politely.
April laughed smugly as she took the paper right from Fang. "Hey!" Fang shouted in protest.
April only laughed as her eyes glided down the paper. "Things haven't been the easiest," April read aloud, "since I decided to move to New York. I only wanted to join the Robotics Team, but that dream has been shot down."
"Give it back!" Fang pleaded.
I couldn't take it anymore. I ran up to April and ripped the paper right out of her hand. "Leave her alone!" I yelled. I heard a big group of 'oo's' around us as I looked to the paper in my hand.
April looked at me menacingly, walking towards me. "Oh, yeah? And what are you going to do if I don't?"
You have to fight your own battles, Donatello, Raphael isn't always going to be around to fight them for you.
I look into her green eyes. "Or I will tell everyone about what you got on your science test."
Her eyes widened before she scowled and walked to her chair. I walked over to Fang and handed her the paper. "I think this belongs to you." She looks at me a bit surprised.
"Th-Thanks." She says a bit unsure of herself.
I smile at her. "I'm Donatello." I say as I extend my hand out to her.
She smiles slightly as she shakes mine gently. "Fang."
OoOoOoO
"Have you met the new girl?" I asked Raph as we walked down the sidewalk to our house, Mikey holding onto my hand tightly.
"Yeah," He said. "She seems really smart."
"Well," I said as Mikey kicked a stone, "she did want to join the Robotics Team." I tell him.
"Did you say yes?"
"I may have blown up at her." I say sheepishly.
Raph cocked an eyebrow and sent a glance towards my way. "Why?"
"Raph," I say with a sigh, "when you're a nerd, you have to be careful who you talk to so that you don't get hurt. Say she was one of April's friends and we had accepted her. April would have so much information to use against us." I explain.
Raph shook his head. "Bro, if there's anything I've learned, it's that people may seem one way, but are really the opposite of what you had originally thought."
"Have you talked to her?" I inquired.
"Yes," Raph answered, "and I feel like there's something up with her."
"Oh?" I inquire.
Mikey gasped and took off. Raph and I exchanged quick glances of confusion before taking off after Mikey. "Mikey, where are you going?!" We called after him.
He left our visual range, and Raph and I were freaking out. "Mikey, where did you go, bud?!" I called.
"Mikey, if you don't come here, I will pound you in so hard!" Raph yelled.
"Donnie, Raphie, come quick!" We heard a small voice.
"Mikey," I called, "where are you, buddy?!"
"Donnie, Raphie!" Mikey yelled. And that's when I saw him. He was in the middle of an alleyway, kneeling down by something.
"Mikey, what are you doing?" I ask as I run over to him. That's when I see a small kitten. The kitten had orange, tabby, fur and green eyes. Its leg was all bloody and its mews sounded pained.
"We can't leave her here." Mikey whined. Raph took a look at the cat, his eyes softening slightly.
"Maybe I can save her." I offered looking to Raph.
Raph looked at me, eyes looking doubtful. "Do we even have enough money to take care of a cat?"
I sighed. "I don't know, Raph. But it's practically torturing the poor creature if we leave her here." I say. Mikey then scoops the small kitten up into his arms.
"You have to help her, Donnie. I don't wanna leave her alone like this." Mikey said with a pout on his lips.
I sighed and looked to Raphael. "I can help the kitten, but I don't think we can keep her, Mikey."
Mikey nodded. "Ok."
OoOoOoO
"All done, pretty kitty." I said with a small laugh. The cat mewed in thanks as it batted its tail about.
"Is she better?" Mikey asked as he entered the garage.
I chuckled. "I fixed her leg, but it may take a bit for her to be actually fully healed."
Mikey nodded as he petted the cat. "Klunk." He said with a content sigh.
I look back to my baby brother. "Huh?"
"Klunk."
"What's a Klunk?"
Mikey pointed to the kitten. "She is."
I sighed lightly as I left the garage only to be encountered by Raph who was sitting on the couch. "Howdy, ho, Ranger Joe!" He joked.
I cocked an eyebrow. "Really? We're doing Full House references now?"
"Yep." Raph said with a pop of the 'p'.
I shook my head as I walked out to the kitchen and looked at the calendar. "Hey, Raph, did you figure out when that twin day was supposed to be?"
"Oh yeah! I think that's in about three weeks or so."
"Still up for it?"
"Heck, yeah!" Raph said. I laughed. Raph and I had always thought of Twin Day as a tradition. Twin Day was where twins went inside a building and went against other twins in competitions.
The front door then creaked open revealing Leo with a grim look on his face.
I take one look at his expression, and I know something is up. "Leo, what's wrong?"
Leo looked to Raph. "Raph," He said calmly, "something has happened to Casey."
Raph looked at Leo, fear and concern written on his face. "What? What happened?"
Leo sighed as he placed a hand on Raph's shoulder. "Casey's little brother, Cody, found Casey in an alley. He was jumped. He was roughed up pretty bad, Raph."
Raph's eyes were filled with fear, concern, and overall anger. "Is he ok? Where is he now?"
"Calm down, Raph," Leo instructed as he continued to grip Raph's shoulder. "He's going to be ok, but he's in the hospital right now."
Raph looked to me, and I looked back at him. Why did he look so torn? So upset? I mean, I would be too if one of my friends were like this, but he looked absolutely pained. Almost like the day Mom and Dad had died. But not quite there, yet.
"Can we go see him, Leo?" Raph asked, finally breaking the hold on my eyes.
Leo nodded once before looking towards me. "Do you think you can watch Mikey while we go? I don't want to take Mikey to the hospital if it isn't for someone who he is blood related with."
I nodded, a small smile lined up on my face. "Yeah, I can take care of the rug rat for a bit."
Leo looked at me before getting the keys to his car. He smiled. "Thanks, Don. We'll see you both in a bit." And with that both Leo and Raph exited the house.
I sighed a bit and took out my phone. I looked at for a bit before unlocking the home screen and going to Cody's contact.
How you holding up?
I hit the send button and sat back into the couch, my eyes closed, my head pressed against the back cushion. Is this a bad dream? How could Casey be jumped? He's extremely popular.
I felt a tiny buzz in my hand and I looked at the phone.
I'm ok, just a bit shaken up.
I sighed. I'm sure he was.
OoOoOoO
"Can we watch a movie, Donnie?" Mikey asked me. We didn't have cable, and the TV we had was a small one that sat on an end table. None of us really complained though. We didn't mind having such a small TV. At least we had one.
"Bud, you know that just because I'm watching you doesn't mean that you can stay up late and watch a movie on a school night." I told him as he jumped around me in little circles.
"Please!" He pleaded as he got down on his knees and folded his hands. "I'll take a shower! I'll bark, sit, play dead, roll over, beg, I'll even shake hands!"
I laughed lightly at his offers. "You do need a shower anyways. Maybe a short movie, but nothing too long."
Mikey's eyes brightened as he jumped to his feet and into my arms, nudging my face with his as if he were licking me like a dog. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
I snickered at my brother's antics. "Ok, ok! Down doggy!"
Mikey jumped out of my arms and ran to the bathroom so that he could get into his shower. I couldn't help, but laugh at my baby brother. Oh, how I love his antics.
OoOoOoO
Halfway into the movie Mikey had already zonked out. I couldn't help the tiny chuckle that had erupted from my throat as his cheek pressed against my arm. I lied my head on top of his.
I then put my head back up and looked towards the clock on the kitchen counter.
9:03pm.
I shake my head and lie it back down on top of Mikey's. They told me that they'd be back home by around 9:34. That's enough time for the movie to end and for me to put baby Mikey in his bed.
But then it's the faintest echo. The faintest sound. Nothing like I had ever heard. Its voice was so familiar. But it wasn't my own.
I had had a choice to make. It's as clear as day. Do as we say or your best friend gets it. I couldn't do entirely what they had said, or else he'd be terribly hurt. I did half of the job and hoped it would be enough. Apparently, it wasn't. Now my friend is hurt and it's all my fault.
Bum, bum, bum! Who is that voice, and what are they talking about? Stay tuned! Did you like it, love it, or hate it? Let me know! Your opinion matters! :)
