A/N: Prompts used for this chapter:
No 13. Chemical Pneumonia, Oxygen Mask
No 14. Heat Exhaustion, Fire
No 15. Science gone wrong
The explosion was strong enough to slam the doors of the lab wide open.
Leonardo, having been in the middle of doing dishes, abandoned the task in a flash, his feet taking him towards the lab where thick, black smoke was already pushing out through the doors. As he got closer he lifted his hand in front of his mouth, knowing it wouldn't do much to shield him from the smoke, but it barely mattered. Donatello was in there.
"Donnie!" Leonardo called when he walked in through the doors, ducking down to avoid the worst of the smoke. His eyes widened when he saw the flames amongst the smoke. At least one-third of the lab had caught fire, and his brother was in there, maybe hurt, maybe lying in the middle of the hungry flames.
Michelangelo and Raphael were in the garage above the lair, and Leonardo didn't know if they had heard the explosion. Still keeping his hand in front of his mouth he ran into the smoke. The heat from the flames greeted him immediately, the smoke made his eyes water. It was difficult to see, but he knew where the fire extinguisher was. Feeling the now blackened wall he found it, having to lower his hand from his mouth in order to grab it. He pointed it towards the flames, walking further into the room.
"Donatello!" Leonardo yelled again, coughing as he inhaled some of the smoke. He had managed to put out some of the flames before the fire extinguisher was used up, but there was no sign of Donatello, and there was still fire raging in the back of the room. Items lay scattered on the floor, thrown around by the explosion, some of them still slowly burning. Leonardo continued towards the loudly crackling fire, his heart hammering against his chest. Even if the flames hadn't reached his brother, the explosion itself could have hurt him badly. He needed to find him right now, get him out of here, and then deal with the rest of the fire.
"Leo!"
The sound was muffled, but Leonardo was sure he had heard it. Hurrying up his steps he headed towards the sound.
"Do-"
He tried to call for his brother, but the smoke around him made him cough, the black smog burning his throat. Pushing through the feeling he walked right by the fire, feeling it heat up his skin. Leo was thankful that the lab had been built to be somewhat fireproof; the stone floor and walls prevented the flames from spreading further into the lair, but there were a lot of items and some furniture the flames were happily consuming. Leo felt a distant sadness for Don's belongings, knowing that a lot of his work had been destroyed, but the feeling was distant for none of that mattered if his brother wasn't alright.
His heart jumped up into his throat when he saw the prone form of his brother. Don lay on the floor under what had to be one of his shelves; he was tugging at his leg, trying to get it free from under it. The shelf itself wasn't heavy, Don could've easily lifted it even in his prone form, but the items sitting on the shelf had fallen down as well, now weighing down the shelf on top of him.
The shelf had caught fire, the flames already licking the spot where Don's leg was stuck. His brow was furrowed in pain, either from the weight on top of him, or from the heat of the fire.
Leo dashed to him, kneeling next to him, starting to push away the heaviest of items. Their surface was already warm to the touch, not enough to burn him, but still uncomfortable to touch. The heat was intense this close to the flames, and Leo could feel sweat rolling down his skin as he struggled to free Don. Once the heaviest of the items were pushed aside Leo could try to lift the shelf, but it meant positioning his hands right next to the flames. Not hesitating, Leo did just so, grabbing the shelf and lifting. Upon feeling the weight being shifted Don immediately dragged himself forward, and once Don's leg was no longer underneath the shelf, Leo dropped it back to the floor, quickly backing away from the heat.
Don had clearly been in the middle of some experiment before the explosion, because he was wearing some protective gear and a respirator going over his mouth and nostrils. Still Leo let his eyes run over him, seeing that the skin on his previously-trapped leg had been slightly burned, but he seemed fine otherwise. That made Leo feel relief; besides his leg, Don wasn't hurt, and thanks to the respirator, he hadn't breathed in the smoke. But his leg wasn't only burnt, his ankle looked swollen too. Leo stepped next to him to help him up from the floor, draping his arm over his shoulders, urging Don to lean on him. Together they started to make their way back to the exit of the lab.
The heat was uncomfortable even as they moved away from it. The whole room felt hot now, and Leo was afraid that there would be a secondary explosion, so he hurried their steps, almost dragging Don forward. By holding onto Don he couldn't hold his hand in front of his mouth, and it was starting to get difficult to breathe. Light-headedness creeped in, the smoke making him cough harshly. His vision was already blurry from all the smoke, but now there were black dots dancing in the corner of his vision. All this made Leo just walk faster, desperate to get out of the smoke-filled room.
"Leo, take this-"
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Don touching the respirator on his face, his voice muffled behind it. He was clearly aiming to give it to him. Leo shook his head- they were close to the doors, stopping to swap the respirator would just cost them time. Just a few more steps and they'd make it out-
Leo hit his leg on something, stumbling, almost losing his balance and sending both of them to the floor. Leo was coughing harshly now, only managing to draw in more of the black fumes in the air. Their roles had changed; despite his limp, Don was now dragging them forward. Leo hadn't given his body the command to slow down, but he couldn't see anything, he felt dizzy, his throat and lungs burned. He knew he had inhaled too much of the smoke, knew they had to get out- shouldn't they be at the door by now? He was sure he had led them the right way. They had to be close. They...
Stumbling for the second time, a mixture of a cough and a groan left Leo's mouth when he connected with the floor. Don hit the floor with him, but Leo couldn't do anything but cough and gasp, trying to push himself up, but feeling so disoriented-
Strong arms appeared from the smoke, pulling Donatello away from him. A second pair of arms took hold of the edges of his shell and started to drag him out of the smoke. It didn't take long; they had managed to get pretty close to the door. Once they were out of the lab the hold on him left. Everything was blurry, but he could hear the sound of a fire extinguisher. Someone had received another, and he could hear the sound of rushing water as well, but he could do nothing but to struggle to find air. He knew he was out of the smoke, so why was it so difficult? His chest heaved and his lungs worked, yet the black spots weren't going anywhere. He was gasping rather than breathing, staring at the roof of the lair until the spots in his vision took over completely.
The quiet hiss of a distantly familiar machine woke him up. Once consciousness returned, so did the pain in his throat and chest. Leonardo panicked, instantly back in that smoke, knowing he needed to get out, his hands shooting up to find Don-
"Leo!"
His hands were grabbed and held. Leo's eyes snapped open, taking in the sight of Mikey, who was looking down at him with obvious worry.
"Calm down, Leo, breathe!"
He couldn't- there was something over his beak, his chest hurt too much. A strangled whimper left his mouth, he was getting dizzy again. Mikey was leaning forward, no longer holding his hands, but rubbing his shoulders, still telling him to calm down.
Leonardo tried to inhale, surprised when he could, when air flowed freely into his lungs. Blinking in confusion, Leonardo finally realized what the machine next to him was, what the thing placed over his beak was. As he calmed down he felt silly. Obviously his brothers had put the oxygen mask on him after his trip to the smoke-filled lab. He could blame his moment of panic on the dizziness he was still feeling.
As he exhaled, he had to wince again. A small, painful cough followed. Why did it hurt to breathe? He wasn't in the smoke anymore.
"Just take it easy," Mikey told him softly, still squeezing his shoulders. "You-"
"Where's Don?" Leo rasped, coughing again as talking irritated his throat. He looked around; they were in the sickbay, but Raph and Don were nowhere in sight.
"He's been here the whole time you were out; he just left for the lab. He's gonna be pissed he left just before you woke up!" Mikey chuckled lightly, but continued quickly when Leo looked back at him with wide eyes. "Oh, the lab is safe! We put the fire out. The ventilation of the lair is still a work in process… And Donnie is okay. He has a burn on his leg, and a sprained ankle. No scratch on him otherwise. You saved his shell, Leo."
Leo took a moment to reflect on that, and exhaled in relief. Only to get another cough as a reward- he shut his eyes for a moment, lifting his hand to press it against his chest.
"I'm gonna go get them," Mikey said, his eyes worried again. "Would you like some water before I go?"
Leo nodded eagerly; water sounded heavenly. Mikey only had to reach over to the nearby table, and then he had a glass of cool water in his hands. Mikey removed the oxygen mask carefully. He had already been propped up on the bed, his shell resting against pillows, so it was easy for him to drink. The water felt amazing in his abused throat, yet swallowing it made him cough again, making his chest ache with every violent cough.
Mikey took the water from him so that he wouldn't spill it while he tried to hack his lungs out. Once the glass had been placed away the youngest turned back to him, rubbing the side of his shell, trying to ease his discomfort.
"I'm definitely getting Don," Mikey said once the coughs died down, easing the oxygen mask back over Leo's beak. "Those coughs sound awful."
"They feel awful," Leo confirmed, grimacing when speaking only hurt.
Mikey squeezed his shoulder one last time before standing up. "I'll be right back!"
And Mikey wasn't kidding; in less than a minute his three brothers were in the room. Don's left leg had been thoroughly bandaged and he had a clear limp, so Raph walked with him so that the genius could lean on him.
"Leo," Don greeted him breathlessly, a relieved yet worried smile on his lips. Raph helped him sit down next to Leo's bed. "How are you feeling?"
Leo lifted his hand to make the OK gesture with two of his fingers, giving a small smile. Mikey snickered quietly at the gesture, for it was rare to see Leo make it. Don, however, lost his smile.
"You can't speak?" Don asked carefully, eyeing him with concern.
"I can," Leo said hoarsely, and as expected, coughed right after. Luckily no more coughs followed. "It just hurts."
"Then don't," Don said, now looking guilty. Leo reached for his hand, which Don gave to him, and Leo squeezed his fingers lightly.
"You okay?" Leo pushed himself to ask, swallowing against the pain wallowing in his throat.
"I'm okay, thanks to you," Don answered quietly, giving Leo a weak but thankful smile before lowering his eyes. "I made a stupid mistake, causing the explosion-"
"Donnie, all that matters," Leo tugged at Don's hand to make him look back up, which Don did hesitantly, "is that you're okay."
After the words he had to turn his head away to cough, this time closing his eyes as the pain in his chest grew to almost intolerable heights. He had to press his head against the pillows and take a moment to focus on nothing but breathing, trying to steady it so that the pain would ease.
Once the coughs eased, he turned back to his family with tired eyes. All three of his brothers were looking at him with concern on their faces, and Leo concentrated on keeping his breathing even so that he wouldn't break into another coughing fit, thus worrying them even more. He did want to ask about the lab, wanted to know how much damage the fire had done, but fearing the coughing that would follow speaking, he didn't.
"I vote we don't let Don near anything explosive for at least the next few months," Raph said as he pulled a chair for himself and sat down near the bed.
"I'll vote for that, too," Mikey joined in. They both meant to lighten up the mood, but Don's miserable eyes stayed on Leo. Feeling like their well-meaning brothers had added to Don's guilt despite it not being their intention, Leo forced himself to speak again.
"I'm okay, Don, my chest just hurts." Leo took a moment before continuing, then lifted his hand up towards the mask still on his face. "Breathing is easier already, I probably don't need this anymore-"
Don's hand grabbed his before he could even touch the mask, bringing it back down. Leo only blinked at his brother's quick interruption.
"The mask is staying," Don said, his voice firm, but it softened and turned sad as he continued. "The smoke you breathed contained toxic chemicals. I mean, it's never a good thing to inhale any kind of smoke, but this was even worse- luckily the exposure was short, so I doubt any lasting damage was done to your lungs. But you will most likely be having shortness of breath for a while."
As he spoke he played idly with Leo's fingers, since their hands were still touching. It was a clear sign of how anxious he was.
"You will stay here for at least a few days, it's important you don't put any strain on yourself now. Not like you're feeling like taking a run, I imagine."
Don tried to smile, but it didn't reach his eyes. Leo answered his smile anyway, shaking his head. No, he did not feel like running. He could imagine how painful any exercise would be for his lungs right now. Few days in the sickbay made him want to groan, but he kept his face neutral, not wanting Don to feel guiltier than he already did.
"A few days?" Mikey clasped his hands together. "You know what that means!"
Whenever one of them had to spend time in the sickbay, they had a habit of bringing the TV in there to pass the time.
"Scary movie marathon?" Leo guessed, swallowing down the coughs that threatened to follow. Halloween would be only next week, but their scary-movie enthusiastic brother probably wouldn't mind starting ahead of time.
"You bet! I've already made a list of movies we should watch!"
Leo smiled at that. Apparently they'd have a long night ahead of them. Not like he minded, he'd be happy to watch the movies to pass the time. Besides, it wasn't like he would be confined to the bed- he could get up and move around tomorrow, do some stretching, maybe some katas as well. Maybe Don would even let him have his swords- well, maybe not, but one could hope.
"C'mon, Raph," Mikey jumped over to the red turtle, yanking at his arm, "come help me move the TV!"
"Only if ya make some of that popcorn with extra butter," Raph said as he stood up. Mikey bounced towards the door, Raph following after him.
"Who do you think I am? Of course there will be extra butter popcorn!" Mikey had already exited the room, but turned back to peek in one more time. "Anything you two want?"
Both Don and Leo shook their heads, content with the popcorn, for they knew Mikey would make more than enough of it. After their brothers left, Don stayed still in his chair, still holding onto Leo.
"You really scared me," Leo said weakly, watching Don with warm eyes. "I'm glad you're okay."
He coughed, shifting on the bed, but it did nothing to ease the tightness in his chest.
Don was biting his lip, clearly wanting to say something, but seeming to struggle with himself. Leo waited patiently.
"You shouldn't have… you know better than to run into a room full of smoke." Don was frowning, looking down at their hands. "You should've gotten a mask, or waited until-"
"Do you really think I would've just left you there, having no idea if you were okay? Donnie..."
Donnie's hold on his hand tightened.
"Well, no, but… Because of a mistake I made, you… ugh. This is just like the time I almost broke your hands- you ended up suffering for my mistake."
"Stop, Donnie," Leo ordered, his voice firm but his eyes gentle. "This was an accident, just like the time with my hands. Everyone's okay, and that's what m… matters."
God, he was in no condition to speak, having to fight to get the words out. Yet this was important, it was important to make Don realize this so that he wouldn't have to deal with his guilt alone. It really did remind him of the time Don had hit him with his bō, it had happened a long time ago, and Leo could understand why Don was thinking about it now.
"You're not okay," Don said with a small voice, carefully looking up into Leo's eyes.
"I will be," Leo said gently. "I promis-"
This time a harsh coughing fit interrupted him. He had to lean forward, and Don let go of his hand to place a hand over his shell instead, his other hand moving up to keep the oxygen mask over his beak.
Once it was over, Leonardo leaned into the pillows, wishing he could just close his eyes and fall asleep to escape the pain even for a while.
When he looked at Don again, not only did his chest ache, but his heart as well. His brother had no place looking so guilty, so he opened his mouth again, but Don quickly shook his head.
"No, don't," Don said. "Don't talk. I understand it was an accident, I do, but I still feel bad, and that won't change."
Don moved his chair so that he could lean against Leo's shoulder. Leo lifted his arm, making room for his brother, wrapping that arm around his shell and pulling him close.
"Thank you for coming to get me," Don continued quietly. Another memory swam into his head- when they'd been way younger, testing his new toy car in the sewers. He had fallen into the current trying to retrieve the car; that time Leo had saved him from the water, today from fire. "The fire was spreading pretty fast, and the shelf on me was already burning. I knew you guys must've heard the explosion, but… being right next to a rapidly spreading fire and unable to move is a bit scary, I guess."
Leo could imagine how Don must've felt, to be trapped there, unable to do anything as the fire neared. He tightened his hold on Don, pulling him even closer, and Don wrapped his hands around him to lightly hug him.
"I'll always come get you," Leo promised in a hushed voice, slowly petting Don's shell. It was the easiest thing he could promise; in retrospect, he might've acted stupidly dashing into the smoke like that. What if he had passed out in there before finding Don? He would have put himself in grave danger, and nobody would've gotten to Don before the flames would've spread- but he couldn't help it. It was pure instinct to get to his brothers if he knew they were in trouble. Nothing else mattered than getting to them, making sure they were alright.
Not wanting things to get too broody, Leo nudged his brother.
"You sure you can handle the scary movies right now?" Leo teased with a light chuckle.
Don pinched his arm as a revenge for the teasing, giving him an amused look. "You sure you won't fall asleep right before we start?"
The last time they had sat huddled close like this they had both fallen asleep in front of the TV. "Hey, I was pretty well medicated back then," Leo defended himself with a smile.
"Excuses, excuses."
Leo rolled his eyes, just when Mikey and Raph rolled the TV in.
"Alright, dudes, prepare to be scared! I'll just get the popcorn, and we'll be good to go!"
Once again the youngest disappeared from the room, this time headed for the kitchen. Raph moved the chair he had been previously sitting in so that he could watch the TV, then glanced at Leo and Don.
"Ya two sure yer okay?"
They both glanced at each other as if to see if the other was alright, and ended up chuckling at that. Leo squeezed Don's hand once more, trying to get it through that he really was fine, everything was fine.
Soon their attention was on the popcorn and the first movie of the night. With the TV loud enough to create the spooky atmosphere, Leo couldn't even hear the sound the machine helping him breathe made, letting him momentarily forget about the mask still positioned over his beak. His chest still ached with every breath, but knowing how much worse things could've been, but weren't, made it tolerable.
The first movie turned out to be something they all just rolled their eyes at, but already the second movie had Mikey tense in his seat. By the end of it the youngest had moved himself closer to his brothers, and was currently half-draped over the side of Leo's bed, claiming it was just more comfortable to lean on it. Don was still sitting close to him, their arms touching, and Raph sat next to Mikey, occasionally either teasing him or holding his hand on Mikey's shell as a comfort. Smiling to himself Leo relaxed into the pillows, lowering the oxygen mask just enough to eat some of the (admittedly, very buttery) popcorn.
A/N: What is this fluffy ending, yuck ;D I could've used the prompt "science gone wrong" as it was intended but oh well. Also, sorry Don, for making you feel guilty so many times through this challenge, it just happened :I Edit: the chapters still aren't related to each other, just wanted to make a mention to the second chapter here!
Once again thank you for the reviews! Minnie1015, we can pretend that Don and Mikey arrived the next moment to bring Leo and Raph home 8)
Next chapter will be the last part of "The Exit," and we are starting to run out of prompts, and the remaining ones aren't looking too good, so uh, just a warning... Anyway, thank you for reading!