Another day passed, 2 days since they escaped the shredder. Donnie woke up with a little headache and saw Leo was still sitting next to him.
"Hey Don how are you feeling?" Leo asked and checked Donnie. His eye was almost completely healed and he regained some movement in his arm back.
"Better than yesterday" He said and grinned. Leo smiled back. Then Donnie's stomach began to growl in protest. They both began to laugh.
"So, you wanna have your breakfast here?" Leo asked and already stood up to get some breakfast to Donnie but he shook his head.
"How much I love to be served I would like to get up for a while" Donnie grinned and Leo nodded. He understood Donnie. He was sick of laying down all the time and he wanted to get up. He helped Donnie getting up and limped towards the kitchen. He placed Donnie in a chair and went to make some breakfast. They were both silent while making the breakfast. After a while Donnie opened his mouth.
"So how's Mikey doing?" He asked and looked at the plate of food Leo made and gratefully began to eat it. Leo sat down in front of Donnie.
"He's still afraid but he's getting better. Raph even washed him yesterday" Leo responded. Donnie was dazed at the answer Leo gave him. He let Raph was him? Donnie went back to his meal and quickly finished it. Man was he hungry!
"I want to see him" Donnie then said and shoved his plate from him away. Leo sighed and nodded.
"I'd thought you would say that" He said and walked over to Donnie and helped him up. Leo threw Donnie's right arm over his shoulder and helped him out of the kitchen towards the infirmary. When they got in Mikey was already awake. Raph was sitting next to him. Mikey looked up and smiled when he saw Donnie.
"Donnie you're awake!" He exclaimed. Donnie limped forward on his own and engulfed Mikey in a hug. Donnie smiled at the hug. At least Mikey's happy self was still intact.
"Hey buddy, how are you feeling?" He said and released Mikey from the hug. The blanket was pulled until half of his plastron. His shoulders were still bandaged and his ribs too. His wrist were still badly bruised but not as much as before.
"I'm fine" He said and then Donnie noticed the dark circles under his eyes. Raph crossed his eyes and made a sound in protests.
"Don't even try Mikey, you ain't fooling Donnie" He said stubborn and Mikey's smile vanished. He looked tired, exhausted. Was he having the nightmares? Mikey was always the one who had nightmares, and with what happened it was most likely to become only worse. Donnie looked at Raph and he nodded to confirm Donnie's thoughts. He was having nightmares. Donnie grabbed Mikey's hand and comforted him.
"You wanna talk about it?" Donnie asked and looked at Mikey. But he shook his head. Tears formed in his eyes and he turned his head the other way and began to cry. Soft sobs escaped from his mouth and the 3 brothers were all silent.
"There's nothing to talk about" Mikey said in a quiet voice but Donnie wasn't planning on leaving.
"Please Mikey, you have to sleep. Please talk about it" He said desperately. Mikey kept looking in the other way and kept crying. He didn't want to re-live what happened. All the torture the shredder did. And the worst was he was reminded every time he moved and he could feel his wound hurting. He could still feel the screw cracking his toes when he moved, or he could feel the pole slam into his ribs when he coughed. He could hear the water whenever he closed his eyes. He could feel the whip slam on his body whenever he laid on his side. And even worse, he relived it all when he would sleep. Every tiny detail would come back once he was asleep. He didn't want to, he wanted to get it over with, to forget it all. Just don't sleep.
"I said I don't want to talk about, please leave me alone" He said and raised the blanket up to his chin and hisses slightly at the movement. Donnie sighed and stood up. His fingers strolled along Mikey's shoulder
"Okay" He said and signed to Leo and Raph and they both left. Leaving Mikey alone. Donnie closed the door and walked towards the living room, following Raph and Leo.
Nice goin' Don" Raph growled and sat down on a chair. Donnie sighed and sat down too and buried his hands in his face. Leo placed an arm around Donnie and sat down too.
"It isn't his fault Raph, neither it is Mikey's. It has to be discussed somehow, he can't live without sleeping" Leo defended Donnie and rubbed his shell. They all took it hard that Mikey was like this but it looked like Donnie took it the most. Which as understandable since he was locked with Mikey.
"So how is he getting' over it?" Raph interfered still with his arms crossed. He didn't show them but he was really worried about Mikey. At least Raph thought he didn't show and they didn't know. Leo and Don both knew that wasn't true.
"Just like with the water, in time" Donnie said. They were all silent for a few minutes when they were cut off by a scream. Mikey! They ran towards the lab to see Mikey struggling in his bed, eyes closed and throwing his head from side to side.
"No leave me alone. Please get away" He mumbled and struggled heavily. Donnie ran as fast as he could with his throbbing leg and laid a hand on Mikey's plastron and pushed him down so he couldn't move.
"Easy Mikey, we're here, everything is going to be okay" Donnie said assuring. Mikey kept struggling but eventually opened his eyes. His eyes were totally red and he was crying. He was shivering badly and his breathing was uneven.
"I-I'm sorry, I f-fell a-asleep" He said and buried his face in Donnie's arm and Donnie hugged him in response. He kept rubbing Mikey to comfort him. He felt guilty for him. Mikey endured so much and he already was the youngest and most vulnerable. First the problem with the water and now the inability to sleep.
"Don't be Mikey, it isn't your fault" Donnie whispered and Mikey calmed down a bit. The crying turned into sobbing and he looked at Donnie.
"I'm t-tired" He stuttered and started to cry again and buried his face in Donnie's plastron. Donnie kept calming him down by whispering words to him. "I'm tired Donnie but every time I close my eyes I'm back" He said in the most innocent voice he ever spoke in. Donnie's heart broke to see how much pain Mikey was in, not physically, well partly. But mostly mentally. The wounds would heal but Donnie wasn't sure if that was the case with his mental state. The last week had left deep scars in his mind.
"Don't worry Mikey, it will fade in time" Donnie tried to assure but Mikey shook his head heavily and pulled out of the hug again and looked desperately at Donnie.
"But I want It to fade now. I'm tired, I want to sleep.." he said and started to cry again. His eyelids fell in exhaustion but he desperately kept them open. He was tired, he hadn't slept well the last 2 days. Only a few short naps that had to be stopped by those awful nightmares. Raph walked towards his 2 youngest brothers and smiled at Mikey.
"Hey Mikester, you know it will ease. Why don't you show Donnie where we worked on while he was asleep?" Raph said and Mikey looked up to see what Raph was holding. There were 2 pain killing pills on Raph's hand and he gratefully took it. Since he was kicked from the heavy pain killers his wounds started to flare up badly. Donnie wanted to protest when he saw Raph taking a glass of water. Why would Raph do something that stupid. But Raph handed Mikey the glass of water. Mikey tossed the pills in his mouth and Raph immediately grabbed his free hand.
"It's okay Mikey. It ain't gonna hurt ya bro. It's alrigh'" He kept saying to him to comfort him and Donnie was completely shocked when Mikey actually swallowed the pills with the help of water. Raph kept talking to him and Mikey gratefully took another tiny gulp of the water. Then Raph took the glass from Mikey and tugged Mikey in and kissed his forehead. Mikey's eyelids began to close again as the pills began to work. Mikey fell asleep and after a while he opened them again. He was back in the cell again. He was shocked and looked around. The shredder stepped in and threw Donnie into the cell, followed by Leo, Raph and Master Splinter. Mikey ran over to them and shook their life-less bodies. They slowly cracked their eyes over but then they all yelped in pain. No, not his family. Leo Raph Donnie Splinter no! Shredder stepped towards Mikey and pinned him down. He struggled but he was weak and his family couldn't interfere because they were too injured. Leo, Raph and Donnie all looked with guilt how Mikey was struggling weakly in his bed but he didn't wake up. And even though he was having a nightmare he kept dreaming. Donnie again looked at Raph in confusion. Raph noticed and raised his eyebrow.
"Wha'?" He exclaimed and tried to stay low for Mikey.
"How, why….i mean…. how did Mikey…. Well drink the water" Donnie asked, still a bit dazed. Raph just smiled a bit and placed the glass he was holding on the desk.
"Like ya said Donnie. Slowly but surely. While ya were asleep I learned him to drink but I still have to comfort tha littl' guy otherwise he ain't drinking it" He said. Donnie smiled when he heard that. He was getting better. Their job now was to continue and definitely not to go too fast because Mikey actually drank. It was a big improvement but not when you looked at the whole process. Donnie looked over to Mikey again. He still had a long recovery ahead of him. Amazing, well not actually amazing, but he was still impressed how much a bit a water could do to a small turtle. Donnie smiled as he heard Mikey making weird drooling sounds in his sleep and he giggled a bit at the sound. He was finally asleep. Not peacefully, now. But he was sleeping. Leo walked towards Donnie and hugged him and with the three of them they watched Mikey sleeping and they all smiled at the sight of their youngest brother finally asleep. Unaware of the nightmare he was having.