Chapter 4
The clock read 9:45 am, if she set out right now she could get there before lunch. "Perfect," Natalie thought,"I'm stuck alone in New York City with no one to talk to and I can't even walk on two feet, perfect".
Even so, she managed to hobble all the way to the Whitmans house. It only took walking 6 blocks to the train station and 3 trains to do so. Lucky for her, the Keepers were on vacation in New York so she didn't have to go all the way to Florida. She raised her hand to knock on the great wooden door, but a voice behind her forced her to stop.
"Maybeck?" She asked turning around finding herself staring straight up into his chocolate brown eyes. "Hello gorgeous! What brings you here?" He asked, not knowing she was upset. "I've had a rough night and I need to talk to Finn. Why are you here?" Natalie responded trying to act happy as usual. "Emergency DHI meeting," He ended as he opened the door and walked in like he owned to place, which, of course, is his general ora. Natalie followed close behind. She was slow on her gently used crutches, but she somehow made it up the stairs and to Finns room. Maybeck knocked in a specific pattern and Finn opened to the door. "Hey Meybeck! Come on in," Finn said like Natalie wasn't even there. That's because she wasn't. Right before he opened the door Natalie hopped as fast as she could down the stairs and out the door.
She panted heavily as soon as she was sure she was far away from Finn's. Why did I do that? she thought continuing toward the train station. As she looked at her surroundings she saw a familiar face through a Starbucks window. "Kid!" Natalie screamed running, to the best of her ability, toward the store. She burst in and threw her arms around him. Thankfully, they were the only two in the room. Her tears immediately fell and Kid, being the great guy he is, kept her locked in his arms. The worker behind the counter casually gave him his coffee and change and the two walked out. Death the Kid was Natalie's long time friend, she trusted him.
They said nothing until they got to a quiet spot in town. By then, Natalie had stopped crying. "Natalie, I can't see the beautiful blue in your eyes when your crying. Where's that twinkle?" He asked very nonchalant. Natalie explained the story of last night and after it was over she was in tears again. "Come home with me," Kid said after thinking a while, "It dosen't seem like you want to go home and I'm sure everyone in Death City would love to see you". Natalie knew going home would just break her even more, so going home with Kid was the only idea she had. Natalie smiled and nodded. "Now there's that sparkle! Let's run to the lair and grab your stuff then we'll be gone like yesterday!" Kid smiled.
Going back to the lair. She didn't know if that was a good idea. She suggested that she just borrow some clothes Patty or Liz, but Kid wouldn't have it. "You'll be more comfortable in your own clothes. Plus who knows how long you'll be staying with me? I promise it'll be okay."
At the conclusion of this statement he stood up and motioned for Natalie to hop on his back. "Are you crazy?" she said in a half laugh. He shrugged and lifted her up anyway. They got to the lair around sunset. Walking home was Kid's idea. Natalie wanted to take the train, but Kid reminded her that, with the Kraang on her back, the open space is too risky. They arrived to the manhole cover closest to the lair, laughing with every step. As he always was, Kid was Natalie's antidepressants. "I'll wait out here, you go pack and then come back," Kid said motioning to the cover.
Natalie stealthy made her way up the stairs and to her room, as stealthy as you can be on a pair of crutches. So far no one had asked her where she'd been. A couple moments later she was all packed. Natalie then noticed a flashing light in the corner. "My T-Phone!" She thought running over and picking it up. She found a million texts from Finn waiting for her. Finn was her soul mate, or, at least, thats what everyone thought. Sometimes Natalie thought it was easier to talk to other people then him, so she chickened out earlier. Dating a leader-type isn't always the most understanding relationship. Most of the time Finn wanted to fix things right away while Natalie was still upset. She decided to respond "Don't worry. Ill call you tomorrow. Lots of love."
Natalie opened the door and hopped down stairs. Splinter was sitting in the couch watching the news. "Going somewhere?" He asked casually. "Just need to get away for a little. I'll be back by next week." She answered limping out the door. Who knew when she'd be back. With her and Raph's relationship on the rocks and the Kraang hunting her down, she may be gone longer than she thinks. She met Kid in the same spot she'd left him. He carried her bag as they headed toward the station. The two friends were off to Death City. And Natalie was smiling, for the first time in what seemed like eternity.
