After Donatello went to bed, Valeria worked online for a few hours, then turned off the computer. She hadn't been prepared for the utter darkness of Don's home. Sure, she had slept here last night too, but her kind host had stayed in the living room with her. Somehow, she hadn't noticed the oppressive darkness then. Once she closed Don's laptop, it enveloped her completely. It felt like a solid being that was smothering her. The only light was a dull reddish haze escaping from beneath Donatello's door. She wondered what that haze could be.
Don had told her to wake him if she needed anything. She hated to do that though. As much as he tried to hide it, she was sure that coming to her rescue and escorting her through the sewers had taken its toll on him. The turtle obviously needed his sleep, and probably some privacy too. Still, Valeria rose and crept forward, drawn to the light as if she was sleepwalking.
Donatello had left the door ajar, in case she needed him. She pushed it open a few inches more, careful to be quiet. Her friend was sleeping peacefully amongst a nest of pillows. There were several blankets piled on top of him, but his head and one arm were sticking out. There was a large lamp angled over his bed, which was the source of the reddish haze. It looked like a jury-rigged heat lamp, a larger version of the type people used for pet lizards.
She felt like she was intruding, but she couldn't look away. The sight was fascinating. Donatello had always been so human in her mind, but his slumber had stripped all of those facets away. His warm and intelligent eyes were closed. The sweet and reassuring smile was nowhere to be seen on his sleep-slackened face. His gentle voice was quiet. His hands were still. The way the reddish light bounced off of his scaly skin and the cusp of his shell made it clear that he really did have the body of an animal.
But looking further, the picture became more complex. This cozy bed with its fluffy pillows and blankets could have belonged to any person. His room was filled with projects in various states of completion - sketches, models, half-built furniture, and a crib that appeared freshly sanded. She could see dozens of thick books piled in one corner, the hallmark of an intelligent mind.
Her eyes returned to his form. She had never allowed herself to look at him too closely - his snout and scaly green skin, the curve of his shell beneath the blankets. That body that was so animal-like, housed a heart and soul that were completely human. And truly, he was the best human that she knew, the most selfless and altruistic, the bravest, and surely the strongest. But he was forced to hide away, in a sewer of all places, all because of his mutated body, a body which was so beautiful and perfect in its own way. The sight of him warmed her heart, and there were times that she suspected he might return her affection.
The turtle grimaced, letting out a pained but soft moan, and moved his hand to his swollen belly.
And, there was the problem.
Even if she were to get past the huge hurdles standing in the way of a potential romance - his need to hide away because of who he was, the physical differences, and the vast distance between them - she just couldn't risk it not working out and then inadvertently hurting his children.
They would be raised to know so few people. It would only be natural for them to get attached to her. If they attempted a romance and it ended badly, she'd have to leave them behind too. She couldn't do it. She couldn't risk breaking everyone's hearts. It was better to just be there for them all, to be a friend, first and foremost. Don seemed like he could really use a few more of those, and goodness knows that she could too. She was surprised how disappointing it was. She hadn't even realized how badly she had wanted to take a shot with the sweet-natured genius.
To Valeria's horror, Donatello's eyes flickered open. He blinked and then squinted, to be sure she was really there. "You okay?" he asked tiredly.
"Yes. I'm… I'm sorry," Valeria took a step closer. "Did I wake you?"
Donatello gave her a kind smile, the sweetness of which broke her heart. It was a smile that she wanted to see more often - one that he ought to be able to share with the world.
"No need to apologize," Don answered sincerely. "I left the door open for a reason, and it wasn't you that woke me."
Valeria noticed that Don was rubbing his belly. "Your babies are playing around in there?"
"Something like that," Don answered, growing embarrassed and stilling his hand. "What about you? Are you having a hard time sleeping? Do you need another pillow or something? As you can see, I've got plenty."
Valeria smiled at his playful tone. "No. I think it's just… I didn't expect it to be so dark down here. Between that and knowing that I'm underground… I guess I'm just kind of weirded out."
"Oh," Don mouthed. "I guess that it does take some getting used to. Do you think that it would help to turn a light on?"
"No. I'm not scared of the dark or anything. Maybe it's just everything that happened yesterday coming back to haunt me."
"We could watch a movie," Don suggested. The TV wasn't working, yet, but his laptop was big enough. "Maybe you just need a distraction."
Valeria shook her head. "I don't want to keep you awake."
"You won't be. Once the little ones are up, I'm up too." As if to head off any further arguments, Don rose from the bed and turned off the heat lamp. Valeria didn't miss the pained grimace that he valiantly attempted to hide. But, his warm smile quickly returned. He gestured for her. "Come on. Let's find something to watch."
Don stayed in the living room with Valeria long after she fell asleep. It was just nice to have her company, even if she was silent. His babies were moving around so much that he wouldn't have gotten any rest even if he went to bed. When morning approached, he ate some fruit and granola bars, then tiptoed to his bedroom to do some stretching exercises followed by some highly modified yoga.
He'd had to drastically alter his exercise regimen due to back problems, but he still tried to do whatever he could. The yoga was important for balance, given his rapidly changing center of gravity. He did a lot of chin-ups these days too. It was just nice to take the weight off of his feet for a while.
Don was happy to see that Valeria was still asleep when he emerged from his room an hour later. He brewed some coffee for her and scrambled some eggs. It was the sound of toast popping out of the toaster that finally woke Valeria up. It wasn't a bad way to greet the day.
"I cooked!" Don proudly announced, showing off a pan of eggs that were only slightly burned.
Valeria smiled and got up from the sofa. "So you did."
"Would you like some? I know you don't like to eat right away, but I made extra just in case. I've got fruit and yogurt and some other breakfasty type stuff too, if you'd prefer to wait until later."
"That sounds better," Valeria admitted. She stumbled into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of coffee.
Don ate all of the eggs and a few pieces of toast with ginger jam. He poured some tea into a stainless steel travel mug. "Do you want to take a walk with me?"
Valeria eyed Don warily. The poor guy looked ready to tip over, but she didn't think that he'd appreciate her telling him about her concerns. Besides, she was sure that Don knew his own limits.
"How long of a walk?" Valeria asked. "I like to start slow in the mornings."
Don grinned. "Only two or three miles. I'm not much of a morning person either. I used to go for my runs in the evening, but it just wasn't working out anymore. I swear these guys get heavier and heavier as the day goes on." He gave his middle a loving pat while saying the last part.
Valeria lifted a hand. "Wait a minute. Is this a walk or a run? because those are two very different things."
"How about a brisk walk?" Don proposed. He loved going for runs, but it was definitely getting more and more difficult to do so. After all of the excitement these past few days, and running on a couple of hours sleep again, a run didn't sound at all appealing to him either.
"You and I probably have different ideas of 'brisk,' but yeah, I'm game," Valeria decided.
"So, what's it like being pregnant?" Valeria asked as they started walking, daring to address the issue that they had barely touched upon yesterday.
"It's…" Don was going to say that it was fine, like he always did. He was constantly trying to convince everyone that he was okay, even when he wasn't. If he had been more honest, maybe he could have avoided a lot of trouble and heartache. "It's been pretty hard, to tell you the truth."
"You seem like you're handling things pretty well, considering that this can't have been part of your life plan," Valeria observed.
Don shrugged. "I'm doing the best I can."
Valeria smiled. "You always do. Don't you?"
"I always try my best, at least," Don confirmed. "But, there's just so much that I can't control. This process feels so strange to me, kind of like I'm in the passenger seat, but I don't know who's driving."
"I guess that's sort of a good way to describe life in general, isn't it?" Valeria pondered.
Don wondered if that was how his brothers felt. To expand upon the analogy, at least Don was within reach of the steering wheel right now. They were tied up in the back and helpless. There was nothing they could do if things went south. Maybe that's why they had to jump out of the car entirely. Or, had Don pushed them out?
Valeria interrupted Don's silent reverie. "Have you thought of any baby names?"
"Oh," Don puffed as he snapped back to reality. "Um, only a couple. I don't know if they're girls or boys, so I need three of each."
"I guess you'd better get on that," Valeria chuckled.
"Guess so," Don admitted. "Seems like a good project for when I start to slow down more. Right now I have so much else on my mind, and it's such an important decision. I need to make sure that I get it right."
"So, when is this slowing down thing going to happen?" Valeria asked as she cast a sidelong glance at her friend.
"Soon, probably. I think that I'm getting pretty close to hitting my limits," Don admitted.
Valeria threw her arms wide. "And yet here we are!"
"This is going slow for me!" Don defended. "And as it is, I'm going to try and take a nap when we get back. I'm hoping that I can tire myself out enough to collapse from exhaustion despite whatever turmoil happens to be going on inside of me."
"If last night is any indication, your kids do seem to enjoy keeping you awake," Valeria sympathized.
"They do, as do my back and hips, leg cramps and heartburn; not to mention my worries," Don confided.
"And yet you still came to my rescue at the drop of a hat," Valeria pointed out.
"You rescued yourself," Don dismissed. "I just got you to a safe place."
"Well, I just want to let you know how much I appreciate it. You're a good guy, Don. A really good guy." Valeria put a hand across his shell as they walked.
Don looked at the ground to hide his reddening cheeks. He affectionately bumped into her side. "I think you're pretty great too. Sooooo, uh, did you happen to hear back from Bishop yet?"
"Not yet." Valeria sighed. "I'm guessing he'll be in touch soon."
"Please don't say anything about me or the babies, okay?" Don begged. "I don't need him sticking his nose in where it doesn't belong."
"If that's what you want," Valeria promised.
"It is," Don confirmed.
Valeria quite enjoyed walking with Don. The sewers weren't really all that unpleasant. Daylight was streaming in through the drainage grates, and stormwater was flowing like an underground river. Valeria picked up a pebble and flicked it in.
"You can skip rocks," Don observed.
"Sure can," Valeria smirked. "You're not the only one who can keep a secret."