Chapter 8 – Path of Least Resistance

Still as a statue, Donnie stared down at the woman before him - petrified as if spellbound by the redheaded enchantress. The rag that had been wiping his hands now hung limply. His racing heart thumped painfully in his chest. Was it not enough that she haunted his dreams? Now she had the audacity to show up at the lair after avoiding them for over two months! He wanted so desperately to tell her to leave, that she had no business showing her face here, that she stole his dignity only to leave a deep void in his soul. Yet the words eluded him. Lightheadedness made it difficult to form any coherent thought - though changing the oil out the Shellraiser was most likely to be blamed.

"What are you doing here?"

Donnie resisted wincing at his own curtness. The rudeness was unintended but given the bottled up resentment he harbored who could blame him. April was the last person he wanted to see. However, sorrow filled eyes softened his heart; he cursed his weakness. Yet he maintained his cold composure lest she should discover the powerful hold she had on his soul.

April cleared her throat and broke eye contact.

"Are your brothers here? I need to talk to you guys about something."

"April!"

The gruff and unusually happy – or was it relieved? - voice called out from behind Donnie. He turned around and eyed Raph, sensing the shorter brother was the reason behind the temptress' presence.

"Hey, Raph," she replied, offering a slight wave.

"Come on in. Go ahead and make yourself comfortable. I'll get Leo. Donnie, why don't you go grab Mikey?"

April nodded at Raph before walking off to the family room. As soon as she was out of earshot, Donnie tightly grabbed Raph's thick arm and whispered, "You knew she was coming?"

"Not exactly." Raph glared at Donnie's betrayed countenance. "What's it to you anyway? Even if I invited her over, I don't need to run it by you. She's our friend. And right now she really needs us."

"A friend who hasn't spoken to us in months and suddenly shows up out of the blue…there's a catch."

"Yes, there is."

There is was – his confirmation. Raph absolutely knew why April was wiggling her way back into their lives. Hell, he probably invited her back. Donnie's eyebrows furrowed, carving deep creases between his eyes.

"You know why she's here, don't you?"

"Get Mikey," Raph commanded, ripping his arm out of Donnie's grasp. "And do us all a favor and get over yourself, Don. We ain't little kids no more. I don't need to pep talk you whenever your crush plans to drop by. Besides, don't you think it's time to let her go? She was never into you anyway. It's time to finally accept that. It's the adult thing to do."

With the final stab to Donnie's already broken heart, Raph left to track down Leo, leaving Donnie to sulk alone. The dejected turtle finally stormed off in search of Mikey only to (not so surprisingly) find him whipping up a snack in the kitchen. Donnie should have known better than to find him anywhere else though, much to his chagrin, it took searching several rooms while strategically avoiding eye contact with April each time he passed through the family room to track down the youngest ninja. Finally locating him however was both a blessing and a curse – blessed to have found a sanctuary away from April but cursed that he had no choice but to go back out and confront her again. Donnie resigned to leaning against the wall with his eyes shut as he recited a silent mantra in hopes to calm his nerves.

"What's up with you?" Mikey asked in between bites of cold pizza.

"April," Donnie mumbled out. Nothing more needed to be said.

Mikey studied the beads of sweat rolling down Donnie's face along with the expression that strongly resembled like Donnie might hurl. Sky blue eyes shot wide open as he choked down his mouthful of pizza.

"Oh God! You didn't have sex with her again, did you?!"

This time Donnie's his eyes shot wide open as he restrained the urge to lash out and choke his brother.

"Shhh!" he spat out. "She's out there! And I don't need anyone else knowing about that."

"She's…out there?! What is she doing here?!"

"The hell should I know," Donnie hissed. "I didn't exactly have a chance to strike up small talk."

"Ooh, do you think she came to announce her pregnancy? Ooh, and that she needs a sample of your DNA so she can confirm whether you or Casey is the father."

Not this again!

Donnie glared at Mikey as if the turtle was about to touch one of his precious lab equipment. He approached his brother, pinning him against the kitchen counter – their faces mere millimeters apart.

"I swear on Darwin's grave if you say anything to embarrass me I will end you and make it look like Raph did it."

Mikey gulped down the rest of his pizza, which was incredibly hard given that his throat suddenly felt dry and prickly like a cactus. Shooting one last warning glare, Donnie turned back to the living room with Mikey hot on his heels.

"Hey, April!" Mikey greeted enthusiastically. Rushing over, Mikey scooped her up in a warm brotherly embrace. "Long time, no see. What brings you back to our humble abode?"

Donnie's jaw clenched and his muscles grew rigid as he took a seat as far away from April as possible. Instead of chancing a glance at her, he carefully eyed Mikey as if looking for any early signs that he might spill his secrets.

"Well I have an announcement," she began while nervously wringing her hands together. "Well, Raph already knows…," the words stumbled out.

Donnie turned his head and peered at Raph, who only nodded encouragement toward the nervous girl.

"Go ahead," he urged.

"Well…I-I'm pregnant."

"Whoa!" Leo's eyes widened in surprise but offered his congratulations to the news.

"Holy cow! No way!"

Wanting to smack his forehead, Donnie glared daggers at Mikey while praying that no one else noticed the over-the-top reaction.

That boy may not survive the day at this rate.

"When are you due?" Leo inquired, genuinely interested in the subject.

"In September. So I still have quite a ways to go."

"I suggested to April that it was best that she told us now. Especially since we're not completely sure whether the Kraang could become an issue in the future again or not."

"Smart move, Raph..."

Did hell suddenly freeze over? Leo actually validated Raph's idea. Even complimented it!

"…We can't be too careful. We've learned that the hard way too many times before." Leo then refocused his attention back to April. "Does Casey know yet?"

"Yeah, he does," April replied seemingly a bit more at ease though she avoided looking at Donnie's direction.

While careful not to stare too long at her, Donnie did steal several brief observations. She seemed more pale than usual. Perhaps the morning sickness was rough for her. Dark circles under her eyes suggested lack of sleep. Donnie did not see signs of the "baby bump." Her breasts however….

April's sky blue eyes momentarily locked on Donnie's but just as quickly looked away. Blushing slightly, Donnie desperately hoped April did not notice him staring at her engorged breasts. Ashamed of consistently being drawn to April's beauty, Donnie shifted his gaze to the ground – a much safer focal point. Donnie only half-listened as the others chatted about April's uncertainty of completing college, Casey's involvement since he was so far away, and who knows what else; Donnie began tuning out the conversation. Instead Donnie's mind became consumed with memories of April's inconsideration and betrayal.

Did she ever think about what she did to him? That she broke his heart? Forever carved her mark into his soul? Did she regret using and abusing him? Did she even care?

"Donnie?!"

"Huh?"

Leo's irritated voice snapped Donnie back to reality. His cheeks burned when he found five pairs of eyes staring at him. Hold on, when did Sensei enter the room?

"Dude, focus," Mikey chided a bit, earning him an icy glare that threatened murder.

"Sorry. Guess I spaced out. What's going on?"

Leo shut his eyes and inhaled deeply. Donnie had to give Leo credit – being a leader required iron clad patience, especially when managing your own siblings.

"We're going to rotate escorting April around. As always we'll keep to the shadows. We only need to ensure April's safety. April, you can call us whenever may need to go out – run errands or go to appointments."

"Hold on," Donnie interjected. "Wouldn't our constant presence just rouse suspicion? It might draw more attention to her. It's exactly what drew the Foot's interest to April the first time around."

"As the baby grows, her abdomen alone will draw attention. At least if the Kraang or the Foot tries to pull anything, we'll be able to preemptively handle the situation. It's better than the alternative if she's already put into harm's way. And…," Leo paused as if to generate a dramatic effect. "…You have duty tonight."

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Donnie managed to maintain his composure and hid his disgust at being thrust into the situation.

"Come on," he called out as he stood up. "We'll take the Party Wagon. We can get you home quickly and more discreetly that way."

It took a few moments but Donnie finally heard April's soft footsteps following into the garage. Even after getting into the van, Donnie locked his eyes forward refusing to acknowledge her presence as April settled into the passenger seat. Once the door clicked shut, Donnie revved up the engine and began the dreaded drive to the university.

. . .

The silence hung thick in the air, suffocating the turtle with its misery grasp. He even controlled his breathing, remaining as silent as possible, so that he wouldn't draw attention to himself. Tunneling his vision, he refused to look the girl next to him. He wasn't even sure if April was facing him at all.

I swear they were all conspiring against me. Did Mikey blab his big mouth to everyone else? Were they all rubbing it in that I was screwed over and have to be forever reminded of it…

A sudden gust of wind filled the van as April slightly leaned her face out of the open window.

"U-uh," he stammered nervously. "A-are you okay?"

Biting his lip he immediately regretted the idiotic question.

She's pregnant and probably still suffering from morning sickness.

"The oil smell is really strong. It's making me nauseous."

"Sorry." He genuinely was. Donnie may have harbored a lot of anger and resentment but he wouldn't purposely cause April physical discomfort. He chewed his lip as he mulled over his choice of words. "I don't mean to be difficult but can we roll it up more. We can leave it cracked so you can get fresh air. But I redid the tinting so that giant mutant turtles can be concealed from public viewing."

April blushed and lowered her eyes to her lap. "Sorry, I didn't think about that," she admitted a bit sheepishly while rolling the window back up, leaving only a sliver of separation for the air to seep in.

Donnie snorted back a response, earning him a stony glare. He didn't need to look at her to feel April's eyes drilling holes into him.

"What?" she sneered.

"Nothing," Donnie grumbled back.

April parted her lips as if to press him more, but instead kept silent. Donnie thanked any potential divine being that may have existed and intervened on his behalf. As he drove closer to the university, April's hands started twisting around one another. Even after stopping in front of the dormitory's main entrance, April refused to move with the exception of her left leg now bouncing rapidly. April's agitation got under his skin as he fought hard not to acknowledge it. He found himself praying once again that April would not open any can of worms.

"Donnie?"

Damn it!

"Yeah," he sighed while peaking at her from the corner of his eye.

"I…I…"

Oh, come on! Just spit it out!

"I know…I can't take back what happened….back then. And no amount of apology will ever undo what happened between us. But given that we will have to work together, I hope we can learn to put our differences aside, find common ground, and work together."

Donnie's grip tightened around the steering wheel as he stared incredulously at the horn.

That's it?! You can't take back what happened so you're not even going to offer a real apology…at all?!

The air suddenly felt suffocating as if ghostly tendrils wrapped securely around his throat. In the haze the world spun dizzyingly. He struggled to remember the speech he rehearsed so many times just to find his thoughts to be nothing more than a rambling, jumbled mess of pure, unadulterated rage.

"Yeah…sure," he finally squeaked out for diplomacy's sake. Donnie craned his neck hoping to crack out his frustrations but only resulted in straining his muscle. How the hell does Raph do it so well?

"Hey, Donnie? Can I ask you something?"

April must have sensed his tension. Her tone was more hesitant…cautious.

Why is she still here? Why can't she just leave already?

Donnie sucked in the thick, hot air, which did absolutely nothing to help to sooth his nerves – at all!

"Sure."

The reluctance was more than evident but April ignored it.

"I know I already said Casey is the baby's father, but I just need to be sure. I mean, there was no way we could…you know. A turtle and a human can't conceive a child. Right? We are different species after all…"

His blood boiled up; the pressure forcing through his veins. Donnie turned and stared deep into April's eyes. He wasn't sure what he expected to find in those blue orbs. Her hope? Fear? Uncertainty? One thing was for sure – she didn't want a freak for a child.

"You have nothing to worry about, April. Crossbreeding is impossible in with species as different as humans and turtles. You and Casey were absolutely made for each other."

As soon as he spat out the last sentence, hurt blue eyes fell to the ground and Donnie swore he saw tears forming. He wasn't sure if it was so much what he said or rather how he said it. Either way he felt no regrets. As tears trailed down her cheek, Donnie instantly feared he would once again fall for her bewitchment as he wanted nothing more than to embrace her and beg for forgiveness. He mentally cursed his character flaw. From the first moment they met, April had forever secured her talons into his heart and did not hesitate to twist it however she pleased.

Donnie peeled his gaze away from her and firmly suggested, "You should get out now, April."

Refusing to acknowledge her presence any further, Donnie waited for the door to swing open and slam shut to confirm that April was finally gone. Not bothering to ensure that she entered the building safely, Donnie sped off, anxious to find sanctuary in his laboratory amongst his mechanical companions – the only things in his life that will never disappoint him.