Chapter 21: Open my eyes
Donatello worked hard trying to figure out how to get the item to do 'something' but it refused to do anything. He knew what it was but he just couldn't get it to function. I was just relieved that it wasn't a bomb.
For the remainder of the day he stayed in his lab whilst Karai and Leonardo trained, Michelangelo and I played games and trawled through comic books and of course Robyn spent time with Raphael...in his room. On this occasion I made sure I stayed well away; even though Mikey did keep threatening to burst in just so he could piss Raph off.
I still felt jealous. I couldn't help it. If I could just turn it off I would but it refused to go and each time I saw Robyn emerge from his room and go to the bathroom or the kitchen pain and anger would literally slice through me like a blade. Michelangelo was a great distraction and I was glad he was here but I must have made my feelings so obvious that he picked up on them too.
"Hey Rosie, you don't like Robyn very much do you?" he asked simply, looking at me curiously with big blue eyes. As per usual I felt my cheeks blush up.
"She's okay...she's just a little intense"
"It's Raph isn't it?" he added "You got a thing for him"
"No!" I snapped, blushing furiously
"Yeh you do!" continued the orange banded turtle; latching on to this the way a predator would it's meal "You're as red as anything - you got a crush on Raph!"
"Shush!" I hissed
"Oh this is great! You should let me talk to him - have you said anything to anyone? does April know?" He was by now so excited that I got up off his bed and left the room; deciding that I had definitely had enough of his incessant teasing - which I was sure would only go from bad to worse. Upon leaving the room I bumped head long into the guy at the centre of my crush; the one and only Raphael. Right now I wanted to disappear into a very large hole.
"Robyn's headed home" he began "I'm gonna train with the others - is Mikey coming? You wanna watch?"
I felt flustered and now began to sweat profusely "I don't know, ask him, he's..."
"Right here!" exclaimed Michelangelo "Sorry if I'm interrupting anything..." He looked from Raphael to me and back again - this was seriously not helping to calm down my cheek colour so I turned away and left them to it, plonking myself down on the sofa and switching on the television.
"You watch too much of that thing" Raphael was leaning over the sofa next to me; his deep voice sent my body into arousal overdrive "Give me a shout sometime and I'll teach you a few moves - it's either that or you turn into a laze ball like Mikey here"
"Hey! I am not a laze ball!" screeched the youngest whilst pouting his bottom lip at Raphael and sticking out his tongue.
Once they were both safely tucked away in the confines of the dojo I felt like I could finally breathe.
Now typically I had been sharing a bed with Raphael so that, as he put it, he could keep an eye on me and I wouldn't be cramped up on the sofa - which was, in truth, rather lumpy probably due to years of abuse.
I had secretly liked being so close to the largest brother, to hear him breathing and to know he was just a roll away from spooning me! Sounds a little creepy on reflection but I couldn't help it and it was a method I used to keep my crush under some sort of control - a bit like a addict having access to methadone! Raphael was my secret addiction. I just loved being with him, smelling him, listening to him talk and, more importantly, watching those muscles and that body.
Today though I didn't watch them. I thought after Michelangelo's little wind up it would be safer to stay away and keep myself to myself as I was certain he would love to throw more digs my way.
Whilst they were in training I found myself heading to Donatello's lab. I wanted to see what he had done with the device. The answer to that question was 'not a lot'. It was sitting on his worktop next to folds of paperwork that did not make sense to me at all. I lacked the intelligence of mind that Donatello clearly possessed. I had done okay at school but that was purely through hard work; I was certainly not gifted!
Standing over the device I briefly hesitated before picking it up; it was quite light and felt natural in my hands. And that was when it glowed and I dropped it. Light shot out from every angle and I shuffled back suddenly finding my back coming into contact with the door, I tried the knob and it didn't move. Now I began to panic - why had I even touched that the thing? I wished I could rewind and take it all back.
In the next moment something so bizarre occurred that it changed my life from that day on. The Hologram of a man appeared - clear and precise as if he standing there with me and as I looked at his face I felt that I knew him. I instantly connected but didn't know why until he spoke.
"I am so glad you have this - if you do then the Lightgivers will have done their job and in turn will too be rewarded. As strange as this all seems - you must believe what I tell you and you mustn't be afraid. This is your destiny and the hope of all humanity rests upon you understanding your true calling my child. For you too are a Lightgiver but it is you that will have the map and lead the hunt"
My brain was about ready to explode but I managed to find my voice "There must be a mistake, I..."
"I am only a program so cannot respond naturally but I hope this information that I give to you will assist in your quest to find answers. I tried to find a cure; to stop this thing but I failed and for that I am sorry my daughter"
Daughter? Now my brain was seriously fried!
It was a further two hours before they came out of training by which time my little light show had ended and I was left to sit and ponder over what had been told to me.
That man had proclaimed to be my real father - my real mother was not even mentioned - that man had claimed that I was someone called a 'Lightgiver' whatever the hell that was? He claimed that on my 25 birthday I would change and connect with a map which would lead me to something called the 'Source' which I had to protect before something called 'the Shadow' could get to it.
Yes, it sounded like a strange version of Lord of the Rings but without the 'Precious'.
And I reacted as perhaps any normal person would: I got drunk.
I found Raphael's stash of beer in the fridge and I necked it. I was finishing off my sixth bottle as Raphael sat down next to me a further three hours later.
"You're pissed" announced the second eldest brother as he took up residence next to me, I didn't look at him but could feel the intensity of his stare like he was trying to use mystical powers to extract information from my brain "What's up?"
I finished the final mouthful and popped the empty bottle on the cushion next to me "Nothing" I slurred
"Well something's up given the fact that you've drowned yourself in my beer"
I raised my eyebrows and moved round to look at him "Sorry"
"Hey it's not a problem I just wondered why you would get so drunk that's all"
"I wanted to forget things" I replied. For once I was being totally honest.
Leonardo stood over me "Is she drunk?"
I threw my arms out and grinned at him "I'm lucid! and a teeny little bit tipsy"
"She's more than tipsy, we need coffee Leo and water, lots of water"
"On it" Leonardo went off to the kitchen
"But I don't drink coffee" I protested
"You do now" Raphael bundled me up in a blanket and picked me off the sofa "You need to sleep this off"
I giggled "In your room?"
"Yes, in my room"
"But you had sex in there! I don't wanna get in that bed, there might be stains in there.." I realised I was rambling but at that point I really didn't care. He kicked open the door and popped me on the bed "I really love you you know... You should be with me not Robyn she's a fruitcake and you're much too good for her".
He paused briefly before covering me with the blanket and then sitting on the bed.
"Tell Donnie I'm sorry about the gadget - I hope I didn't break it"
He gently brushed the hair off my face. I had my eyes closed - enjoying the feeling of his touch.
"Silly girl" he whispered
"It glowed" I added "And I saw my dad"
Those were the final words I spoke before I passed out.
Raphael watched Rosie finally succumb to the alcohol in her system and fall straight off to sleep. Her face was relaxed and her breathing was deep and steady.
What had she meant about the gadget? Perhaps it was drunk speak but perhaps not. He would have to check with Donnie.
Leonardo came in with coffee and water. The coffee was returned and the water placed by the bed along with 2 paracetamol.
After his brother left Raphael turned off the main light and lay down next to Rosie, rolling on his side so he could look at her. Surely it was drunk speak when she'd said about loving him? It had to be. Why would anyone love him? Let alone a smart pretty girl like Rosie. He touched her face again, feeling her soft skin beneath his fingers. She murmured and shifted forwards, pushing herself into his body and snuggling her head onto his chest.
It felt nice. She smelt nice. So he put his arms around her and kept her close enjoying the contact and the warmth and he too fell into a deep sleep.