Again my apologies for the late update
The Little Turtle.
'Just because you get help does not mean that you have failed, it just means you're not alone.' (Life as we know it)
38) Close Call.
"Daren is acting weird." I said seemingly out of nowhere, but because it's Mikey he got on board with my trail of thoughts like only a best friend could. Donnie was busy in his lab, working with April on a 'secret project'. Leo and Raph where duking it out in the dojo under the supervision of master Splinter. I had made sure none of them were within earshot whenever I spoke about my human friend … I didn't exactly know why but Mikey ensured me it was important.
"Weird how?" he asked while he was paging through his comic book.
"Well … ever since last week he … I don't know seems paranoid … like all the time." I complained while doing my math homework.
"Paranoid?" I heard Mikey ask as I focused on my current equation.
"Like he fusses when I show up with a bruise, he's starting to ask questions too … like where I live and why I don't go to school and stuff." I heard Mikey scoff and I look up to find him staring at me like I'm the biggest idiot in the world.
"… what?" I defended.
"What's the last thing the two of you did together?" he asked, "Outside of that school thing of course."
"… well …" truthfully we didn't really hang out, sure in the weekends we meet for classes at the junkyard and sometimes after Daren's finished with school for the day. But outside of that he's either at school or I'm chasing bad guys.
"Exactly, you don't hang out, of course he wants to know more about you Pinky … you're friends aren't you?" Somehow his questioning got on my nerves.
"We do hang out, we went to the park last week and I showed him how to do a back throw." I said as a matter of fact-ly. He choked on his drink and let out one big laugh. I frowned.
"You showed him how to do a back throw?" he laughed trying very hard not to squirt soda through his nose.
I didn't see what he found so amusing, "Yeah and how to punch correctly, because apparently humans are idiots when it comes to self defense." I muttered.
"Well most of them haven't been trained by a ninja master …" I had to give him that one, "… but you basically ended up beating him up? … That poor kid."
" What? No! I just showed him how to … well yeah technically I did throw him a couple of times but he threw me too … once." I muttered. " It's not like training, I'm careful with him." I said to which Mikey laughed again.
"You do realize that's the reason right?" Mikey stated and got back to his comic book.
"What's the reason?"
"You're not like other girls … obviously he just wants to figure you out. If you have a girlf…" I gave him the stink eye and he quickly caught himself, " … for a friend, who shows up with bruises without a clear explanation, in most cases something is up."
"Yeah sure, but he knows I can stand my ground, right? He on the o..." and I shut up, but it was too late.
"What does this kid show up with bruises?"
"I only noticed one, apparently he has a bully problem." Whose asses I'll kick to next week if I ever catch them in the act.
"Thanny, it's not your place to do something about his problems." Mikey warned, reading the murderous vibe I was sending off.
"What? Why the hell not? Don't we bud in into other people's business all the time?"
"Yeah that's different, this isn't life or death, it's just bullies Daren has to learn to stand up to them on his own or he'll be running for the rest of his life."
"That's stupid." I concluded and got back to math.
"You like him." Mikey sang smugly and licked his finger to page through the comic.
"Sure I like him, he's my friend."
"Nah, it's more than that. You LIKE him." He smirked and gave me a knowing look.
"I don't … well he's … just because he's a boy who is my friend doesn't mean we have to be romantically involved! He's just a kid whose presence I tolerate." I stated.
"Yeah right, if any other person came to you sniveling about being bullied you'd smack them around until they stop complaining. Instead you want to defend this kid … I'm telling you Pinky whether you like it or not, you don't just tolerate his presence." I wanted to argue, no way that was true … right? The movies always were very clear about these things.
"… shut up." I said and made a point to ignore him by hiding his smirking stupid face behind my calculus book.
"He likes you too by the way." He said.
"How could you possibly know that? You haven't even met him!"
"Oh please, from what you've told me you've been kicking his ass since you met him, if he hasn't run by now you either dropped him on his head one too many times or he wants to know you … wink, wink." he was enjoying this way too much.
"Me thinks, you've been watching too many chick flicks with April." I said just to get that stupid grin off of his face.
"That might be true, but I balance it out beautifully with plenty of gore and action thrillers."
"Come on nerds head bashing time!" Raph yelled and threw a sweaty towel at Mikey which slapped around his face with a strangely satisfying slap.
Finally! I gathered my books and went to grab my chains. I could use some venting.
No doubt about it the PD's were obviously rising in numbers ... where do they find all these recruits anyways?
Donny was sowing up a cut in Raphie's biceps, Mikey had gotten dangerously close to losing his head. But fortunately Raph intervened in time.
"Stupid dragons." He muttered, for all his big talk Raph was a little squeamish when it comes to his own blood. It was my job to draw his attention elsewhere and to let him squeeze my hand as hard as he likes. Which at times was pretty hard due to the lack of anesthetic.
"You did alright Raphie, I don't think ugly will ever try that again … or eat anything other than soup for the next couple of weeks." I smiled.
"Damn!" he jerked when Donny jabbed at a particular sensitive part. "Damn! Those jerks, they always go after the little ones." He cursed, I glared at him and Donny jabbed him again, this time not so accidentally. Leo and Raph sometimes dubbed the rest of us 'the little ones', because they stood about a foot taller than us and were slightly more muscularly build they looked like the more formidable foes. Labeling the rest of us the lesser of two evils in a fight, and often causing us to take on most of the PD's who were afraid to go up against the big brothers … that didn't mean we liked that nick name though.
"Yeah, yeah, that's usually how bullies work." I shushed him, "Maybe you should be a little bit friendlier, you know to lure in more customers."
"I'll give them friendly alright." He cursed. "Bro are you embroidin' a quilt or something, hurry up will yah?" he snapped at Donnie but didn't dare to look his way.
"I would if you'd sit still, I don't want to screw this up you know." I smiled at Donnie though he was too focused to catch it.
Donnie was sort of forced into the role of medic, though his interest was more based towards computers and engineering … he's still by far the smartest one among us and seeing that he's the only one who has read a medical book he had taken it upon himself to patch us up when we're hurt.
Which was more often than not lately, Leo was laying on the couch with an ice pack on his shoulder and Mikey although saved by Raph from any serious injuries was taping his elbow which had gotten smacked into the ground somewhere along the night. April was fussing over the both Mikey while Leo was discussing the nights events with master Splinter.
Donnie apart from some minor bruises was fine and I only had a bruise on my back and a little cut on my arm.
"Always the little ones my shell." Donnie muttered and cut away the excess yarn, "Alright almost finished." He said an applied a decent amount of disinfectant and a bandage.
"I'd tell you not to use that arm for a couple of days ..." Donnie wiped away the blood on his hands.
"… but that would be as useful as telling you to shut down yer damned computer." Raph joked and flexed his arm a couple of times.
"Just try not to pull any of the stitches this time." Donnie complained and stored away his home made medical equipment.
"Yeah, yeah see yah fer practice tomorrow, I'm gonna crash." And with a small wave he strolled to his room. Donnie sighed before sagging in his desk chair.
"You know that's Raph for 'Thank you for patching me up bro … I love you.'" I said in a bad impression of Raph's voice.
My genius brother just gave me a small smile in recognition, he looked for all intents and purposes tired.
"Yeah … I know." he sighed.
"You know I've seen you do it a dozen of times, if you ever want me to take over just …"
"… thanks little turtle, but I'm alright. We're just lucky it's only has been stitching so far." He sighed, he had all the tools and the knowledge how to set a bone and from the amount of biology books he has I'm sure he has at least practiced removing a bullet mentally from every possible body part. But that's the problem, theoretic.
The first time one of us needed to be sown up was during sparring, Mikey had gotten cut accidentally by Leo's katana's. Mikey had a giant gash in his leg and Donnie having already prepared for this in his mind jumped forward immediately and pushed the rest of us out of the way.
We were useless then, all of us panicking and freaking out. Even Leo who was supposed to be in charge stood there bloody sword in hand until usually laid back, quiet Donnie pushed him aside and started working like he had done it a dozen of times.
It was only afterwards that he was shocked by the events of that evening.
"You did good, I know it's hard on you to Mcgiver your way through stuff like this but you're doing it." I said and patted him on the shoulder. He grabbed hold of my hand and gripped it for a moment.
"What is it?"
"It was really close wasn't it? Mikey …" and he trailed off. Yeah it had been really close, I pushed aside the what if's … Donnie doesn't need that right now.
"Mikey's fine, Raph had his back." I said, I had to chose my words carefully I wanted to comfort my brother but I didn't want to give him the nothing's going to happen to us crap, because none of us can promise that.
"The depth of that gash, if it had hit him on that trajectory …" he looked down and clutched at his head.
"… hey, hey." I crouched before him and tried to catch his gaze. "… don't think like that, they're alright all of us. Don't haunt yourself with what couldn't have happened."
"It bound to happen sooner or later, a broken arm or a gunshot, maybe a stabbing … it's a miracle it hasn't happened already." He said clinically and he seemed to calm down a bit. The look he gave me didn't sit right with me for some reason.
"Nah, I don't believe in miracles. It's because our training and teamwork is so good, we don't allow each other to get hurt … don't try to shove this on some deity, it's our hard work that makes us come through every time." I grabbed his knees and willed some of my strength into him.
"... it's still going to happen." He said in that detached way again. It made me mad, with a jump I got to my feet and towered over him … or it felt like I did anyways.
"It doesn't matter we'll handle it, it could happen to you as much as any of us so you'd better start sharing some of the weight because I don't think you're gonna like it very much if you're the one in here with the broken arm and you have to rely on either Mikey or Raph to put it back in the right place."
He gave one short, laugh and nodded. "Yeah, you might have a point." He stood up and ruffled through my hair, "Get some sleep little turtle, tomorrow's a school day." He smirked and got to sleep after checking Leo's shoulder.