A/N: I do not own any part of the Ninja Turtles corporation. All credit for the turtles and the rest of the TMNT characters. I do not own any brand names seen in this story. All credit goes to their respective owners. I only own my OCs.

** These are the revised & reworked Chapters of my first ever FanFiction. These are probably still trash but I enjoy writing them. Thanks to anyone who's stuck around, I'd love to hear your input!**

Chapter 5: Offending Plants

"Long time no see Vern." Casey deadpanned, coming from the garage. When did he get here? Cassidy looked between Casey and this Vern dude and sensed that there was some unresolved tension.

"Wassup Dude!" Mikey called from the kitchen with a wave and Vern shot him with finger guns before locking eyes with Cassidy.

"Where's Raph and Leo?" Vern's eyes were trained on Cass the entire time and it sent a tumbling feeling in her gut that forced her eyes to go dark and her mind to close off. Quickly surmising that she did not like the way he looked at her.

"Raph's probably liftin' and Leo was in the garage with Don and I.' ' Casey answered plainly with a shrug before throwing a beer at the newest member. Vern barely catches the object in time before cracking it open with a loud pssshhh.

"Whose this?" Vern took five steps forward and Cassidy took two steps back, but not quickly enough as his stride stopped her as he grabbed her hand. It took all of Cassidy's control not to yank her hand out of his grasp as he pecked at her knuckles with chapped lips.

April answered for her, having sensed Cass's uneasiness and stepped to be alongside her, not allowing her to be alone.

"This is Cassidy, she's my dear friend and has been around the boys for a few months," April placed a hand on Cassie's shoulder and pulled her back, out of Verns lingering grasp, "she's a bit young, even for you Vern." It is assumed that by Vern's reaction that April was giving him a look that caused him to push for further investigation.

"Well, how old are you, little Miss Cassidy?"

"Twenty-two," her eyes squinted, "and you, old man?" She unsuccessfully hid her clipped tone with a shrug. To which he reciprocated with a smirk and a wink.

"Not twenty-two." His eyes quickly flicked above her head as she heard someone enter the room behind her.

"Raph!" He called, and Cassidy's hand grasped April's hand at the mention of the red banded brother. April fixed Cassidy with a look, first of concern then of understanding. She squeezed the young brunette's hand before kissing her hairline, hoping she was conveying her silent message of everything is going to be okay.

"Look who it is," Raphael's voice sent a shiver down Cassie's spine, but this shiver was far from the one that she got from Vern. This shiver sent tingles that ignited the second she heard his voice and then burst to flames as he came closer. She internally groaned, hoping that he didn't notice the way he made her feel.

"What brings you around Vern?" Leonardo said as both him and Donnie entered into the space. It's awfully crowded right? Cassidy was beginning to feel a tightening in her chest watching everyone stiffly interact with Vern. Each movement put Cass on edge and she wanted to step out and get a breather, currently her only saving grace was April, who hasn't left her side the entire time that Vern entered into the lair.

"What, can't I come down and visit my best boys?"

"Men." Donatello mumbled as he appeared with a wink to April before nudging her shoulder and disappearing, for undoubtedly, another cup of coffee.

"No." Raphael replied to Vern with a roll of his shoulders, cracking his neck in the process. Cassidy followed his movements with trained eyes, admiring the way his green skin flexed along his bulging muscles. Unbeknownst to Cass, April watched as she bit her lip, her eyes going heavy and her posture to slacken as she eyed the largest brother. With a smirk, April grinned in knowing, understanding exactly how Cassidy felt when it came to loving one of the Hamato brothers.

"You wound me Raph," Vern clutched his chest, feigning hurt.

"Then get on wit' it." It was obvious that Raphael doesn't exactly tolerate the old man as his stance shifted between each leg.

"Well…I may have done something a bit…" His hand shook out in front of him in a so-so gesture, cringing his way through his words. The brothers waited with borderline bored expressions, waiting for Vern to continue.

"Dude, go on…" It was Michelangelo who spoke up, dusting off his hands on his apron before placing them on his hips. Cassidy giggled because he resembled an overworked mother.

"Okay so I may have gotten into a bit of a gambling problem—," Vern continued to explain his situation and after a dreadful, five minute monologue, he finally concluded his predicament with puppy-dog eyes directed to the turtle in purple, who leaned against the counter beside April.

"Vernon." Leonardo's voice commanded the man's attention.

"Yes, what you've done was not the best move but it would not be right for us, or Donnie, to intervene. You need to live with the consequences of your actions."

"Leo, please…I'm in serious trouble man I, it's—," Vern paused, his eyes darting between each brother before locking eyes with Leo again.

"It's the Purple Dragons. I didn't know, I—"

"Dude, the Purple Dragons are bad news!" Mikey's voice rang out before the rest chimed in. Scolding the old man while Donnie grumbled something that caused a laugh to escape before April covered her mouth in time. Cassidy turned to look at the brunette reporter and the purple-banded terrapin, who at this moment, looked as thick as thieves. They'd be good together, Cassidy thought as she watched the two from the corner of her eye, and wondered if her and Raph looked like that from the outside. If only

"Psst, Cass," April called, ushering her head towards the living room as the rest of the boys continued their arguing over how stupid Vern is. Quickly following the reporter, they both moved towards the den, not noticing that some of the brothers had disappeared.

"Did you get all your presents wrapped?" Ape asked.

"Yeah, well, almost," Cassidy began glancing around the den, before continuing, "I still need to wrap the one you got for you-know-who."

"Oh yeah, I hid that in Mike's 'secret stash' earlier," said April as she made to stand, dragging Cass with her.

"Hey Mike," April, with Cass in tow, asked if they could finish wrapping gifts in his room. Mikey, of course, was thrilled and made a joke which earned him a hit upside the head courtesy of both Raph and Leo.

"Oh Angelcakes! Donnie's got all the tape in the garage though!" He yelled before Leo refocused him back on Vern's predicament.

"I'll get the tape and you get the wrapping paper and I'll meet you in Mikey's room." April finished before turning towards the garage with a little jump in her step. It didn't take long for Cassie to gather all the supplies before she realized she didn't have any scissors and remembered she gave them back to Donnie earlier.

She made her way towards the garage, but just before she entered, she heard her name. Pausing, she moved back from the doorway, pressing herself up against the wall.

"Do you think Cass or any of your brothers—," April's voice was cut off by Donatello's reassuring words.

"No…would it change if they did?"

"Not for me…you?"

"No," Donatello's confirmation was met with silence until Cassidy froze at the unmistakable sound of lips. Peaking past the threshold she witnessed April standing between Donnie's knees, her hands holding his cheeks as they kissed. Donnie's hands gripped her waist and pulled her even closer and Cassidy was lost for words.

"What're doin'?" Cassidy covered her mouth to muffle her gasp as she dropped back against the wall. Her breathing came in quick as her eyes widened as they set on Raphael, his hand outstretched as if to touch her.

"Shh!" She begged, placing a hand over his lips to silence him, enjoying the view of his own eyes widening. With a gesture of her head, he moved them so he could see what she had been caught witnessing. As soon as his eyes landed on his brother, Cassidy's hand tightened as she felt his body tense as if he was about to yell. She pulled him back, which was easier than anticipated mostly because he had been so caught off guard by what he just saw. APRIL AND DONNIE!? TOGETHER? Raphael and Cassidy were having a silent war as their widened eyes sought the other, both not realizing how close they were until the sound of Donnie's computer chair rolled across the concrete garage floor, breaking them out of their trance. Cassidy immediately flushed and pulled her hand away from Raphael's mouth, his lips leaving her hand in a fuzzy static. Her heart was beating so fast that she feared he could hear how he affected her. Why does he do this to me?

"Oh, hey Raph, Cass," the sound of April's voice called to them and they jumped apart before locking eyes with the reporter who stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips with Donatello standing a few feet behind her, one quizzical brow raised. Uh oh, they've been caught.

"There you are! Haha, I was trying to find scissors, Raph was trying to help me." Her shaky voice wasn't even convincing and by the look on both Donnie and April's faces, they weren't buying it either yet neither one commented on it.

"I got them," April gestured to the pair in her hands, along with the tape dispenser in the other.

"Cool, cool, cool,"

"Cool," Raphael finished Cassidy's rambling with a heavy hand to her shoulder, pulling her back towards him as April and Donnie pushed through, exiting the garage and leaving Raph and Cass in their wake.

"Oh man," Cass blew as she watched the adorable pair leave, her eyes still wide with shock which hadn't gone unnoticed by Raphael.

"Yeah, uh…weird huh." He scratched the back of his neck as he tried to digest exactly what he'd just witnessed. Donnie and April…since when? How? Could… Raphael stopped the thought before it even had a chance to settle in. He couldn't think of anything ever happening between him and Cassidy. There's no way. Donnie was different. He could offer April a lot that Raphael wasn't able to offer Cass and that thought alone hurt him.

"Weird? You mean wonderful? I knew they'd be great together! She always, always talked about him before I even met you all. She'd talk about—," Cassidy continued to ramble on but Raph wasn't quite listening, instead he wondered if Cass ever talked about him like that. If she ever—.

"Yeah…let's go before someone comes lookin' for us Tiny." He pushed them forward, back towards the kitchen and as far away from the garage as Raphael could get them.

April and Cass finished wrapping up the presents in silence yet Cassidy wasn't about to let her friend get off that easily.

"I saw you." Wow, way to be smooth girl, Cass cursed herself but shook it off, ready for some answers.

"Hmm?" April hummed, refusing to make eye contact as she continued to fiddle with the tape dispenser in her hands.

"You and Donnie." Cass watched as April's body seized up at the sound of his name and knew that they had been caught earlier.

"And?" April's voice was clipped, soaked in unease, waiting for Cassidy's reaction. Worry encompassed her because April didn't want to lose a friend because of who she loved.

"And? And! Ape—," April turned and locked eyes with Cass and immediately relaxed, "I'm so happy for you two! Why didn't you tell me!" Cass threw a Christmas bow at the reporter before ducking as she retaliated.

"I wasn't sure how'd you react…uh, did Raph also,"

"Yeah, I sort of made him…I wanted to make sure that I wasn't seeing things." She shrugged, but at the mention of Raph, she didn't want to admit that she wished that it had been her and Raph caught. Cassidy sighed, she was really head over heels for the large brute.

"So, uh—," Cassidy has never known April to be lost for words but knew exactly what she meant because she had felt the same.

"So nothing Ape, you and Donnie make sense, you both are absolute couple goals!" But, by the look on April's face, Cassidy finally had the courage to confess.

"The goals I wish I could reach with Raph," she whispered her confession before busying herself with stacking the presents in their respective piles.

"AH! I KNEW IT!" April tackled the young woman, the two falling back onto the pile of wrapping paper and blankets.

"Oh, oh oh, what do we have here?" Michelangelo's teasing voice broke the barrier of his door as he witnessed the two girls on top of the other.

"Mikey what—," Raphael's voice died at the sight before him. April on top of Cass, both their faces red as they continued to giggle from their embrace on the floor. Raphael gulped before hiding Mikey's eyes with his large hand, moving his youngest brother out and away from the doorway. Raphael tucked and forced his brother back towards the kitchen, the entire way picturing what Cassidy would look like underneath him. Fuck.

"Uh, Raph…Can I talk to you?" Raphael set the bar down before looking at his lanky brother who lingered in the doorway to the weight room.

"Yeah man, what'd ya need?" Sitting up, Raphael braced his hands atop his knee, knowing exactly what Donnie was about to ask.

"So, earlier um, April and I were just talking—,"

"Don,"

"We were just talking, Leo asked me to check Vern's accounts and grab a tracker and April came in and—,"

"Don," Raphael tried to focus on his brother but the genius continued to ramble on, trying to dissuade the truth of what both Raphael and Cassidy saw.

"Donnie I saw you and April." That finally shut him up. Raphael watched as his genius brother froze, his eyes going wide as he twiddled his fingers before him. A nervous habit he's always had, even as he was young.

"So you saw—,"

"Yeah, Cass and I both did…I'm happy for ya." Raphael tried to say with a nonchalant shrug but the look on Don's face was anything but relaxed. With a low mumble, Raph stood, walking toward his brother and clapping him on the shoulder.

"Treat 'er good will ya? You're my brother but if ya hurt her, I will kick your ass." Donnie chuckled at the borderline, empty threat, his shoulders relaxing at the contact.

"I still can't believe it, she's just—," Raph swore he saw hearts in his brother's eyes. Raphael understood the feeling. He was happy for his brother, he deserved whatever happiness but Raph couldn't help but feel a bit jealous. He wanted what Donnie had, he wanted to be like that with Cass.

"Yeah, I get it genius, you're in love."

"That's the understatement of the century. I've loved her since I was seventeen." Raphael remembered there had been a time that each of the brothers had fallen for April, she was their first love but that love never ended for Donnie. Leo was the first to consider Ape a sister, Raphael soon followed and for the longest time it was between Mikey and Donnie before Mikey lost interest after meeting with a girl who he plays with online. Donnie never stopped, if anything his love for the beautiful reporter only grew through the years and now that Donnie was 22, he deserved to be happy after chasing the woman for five years. Talk about being committed.

"Happy for ya man," Raphael surmised, clapping his brother on the shoulder again before turning them both to walk out of the weight room.

"Yo…have you noticed," Mikey whispered in Cassidy's ear as she was helping him make the pie crust.

"Hmm?"

"April and Donnie!" His breathy whisper ghosted over her ear as he gestured towards the two love birds hovered in front of Donnie's wall of monitors, giggling incessantly.

"What about them?" Cassidy promised April that she wouldn't tell anyone about her and Donnie.

"They seem…I don't know, suspicious," Mikey's brow quirked, glancing back towards his brother.

"Whatever ya say Mikey," Cassidy then asked him about the pie crust and successfully distracted him from the couple that were, in fact, not being as subtle as they probably hoped. But despite it all, Cassidy was super happy for them and happy that everything that April said now made sense. It had always been Donnie. Smiling to herself, she watched as Mikey finished the pie crust and moved it to cool in the freezer. But, as Cassidy moved to start making the pie filling, Michelangelo had an idea brewing and with an excuse to use the bathroom, he snuck away to enact his sudden plan. Oh this is gonna be good.

About ten minutes later, Cassidy was just about finished with the second pie filling when she noticed that Michelangelo hadn't returned but just before she made a move he returned with a shit eating grin on his face.

"Mikey…what did you do?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he sang, readjusting his "kiss the cook" apron, his smile never faltering. Cassidy, clearly not being convinced, moved to ask him when she caught him putting his phone back in his pocket.

"What are you playing at?" Mikey turned to with a smirk but before he answered, Donnie exited his lab with a huff.

"Mikey, I swear if you broke—,"

"HA!" Mikey exclaimed, pointing towards his genius brother, causing Donnie to pause in question and April appeared at his side.

"Wha—," April was cut off as Mikey started to bounce up and down in excitement, pointing above her head. With a knitted brow, she followed his hand movement and blanched as her eyes locked onto the offending plant.

"Donnie." Hearing his name whined out by the beautiful brunette he glanced up with a nudge to his shoulder.

"Mi—,"

"Ha! You guys have to KISS!" Mikey cheered, egging on the genius knowing that nothing was going to happen. Ha, it's been awhile since I've tricked Donnie!

"Michelan—," Donnie shook his head in disdain but with another nudge from April he paused, glancing down at the reporter he gulped. He wasn't ready for this, Cassidy could tell by the look on his face. She was upset with Mikey, but wondered if this was the push that April and Donnie needed.

"It's okay Donnie," April whispered to Donnie but Cass was able to read her lips and smiled as she watched the hesitance over take the tall genius.

"Ape—," Donatello was quickly cut off as April reached up, locking her hands around his neck before bringing him down to her level. With a silent whisper she sealed their lips together and Donatello squeaked, his hands dropping to her waist as she tightened around his neck.

Cassidy glanced between the lip-locked couple and Mikey and failed to suppress her giggle.

"Wha—, How! When?" Mikey's jaw was all but on the floor as he watched his nerdy brother kiss their Hogosha.

At Michelangelo's outburst, Leo entered the lair as the couple broke apart, Donnie's string of giggles paired with his signature snort left April with a huge grin as she tucked her hand in his. The two grinning and laughing together as the reality of the situation sunk in.

"What do we have here?" Leonard's smooth voice entered as he stood with his arms crossed watching everything unfold before him. Cassidy had already moved to crowd the couple that stepped from under the celebratory plant. As Mikey began to plead his case, both April and Donnie moved to interject, making sure that Mikey was going to pay for what he's done, Raphael walked back into the den to stand beside Cassidy.

"What's up wit' dem?" Cassidy whipped her head around, looking at the large being beside her. Oh shit, Cass's heart pounded in her chest, her face flushing the longer she looked up at the confused brute, his brows knitting together before he gripped her shoulders and shook her gently, asking if she was alright but, before she could mutter a reply or move away, Mikey noticed them.

"Oh yeah!"

"Wha—," Raph's words were cut as he watched the short brunette below him point towards the ceiling and as his eyes traveled up, he gulped, grumbled and growled. Well that's not the reaction she had anticipated… A pang shot through her chest as he refused to make eye contact with her.

"C'mon dude! Ya gotta kiss her! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" Mikey chanted before Leo silenced him with a quick slap to the back of his bald head with a silent 'shut up Mike.' Cassidy twirled her fingers into the baggy pocket of her hoodie, wishing she was anywhere but here at the moment.

"Um, we, we don't have too…Mikey did the same thing to April and Donnie," she chuckled, "you should've seen Mikey's face when—," Wha—.

Her sentence died as Raphael dipped, his large hand gripping her chin lightly to turn her and placed a chaste kiss to her cheek. She went to move into him but his hold on her kept her still which drove her wild. His lips were so close, and she just wanted to taste him… But, no sooner did his lips push against her cheek, did he vanish. The blush moved down her throat and coating her chest as she saw his cheeks darken before he cleared his throat. Once again refusing to make eye contact, Raphael did what he does best, he pushed past his eldest brother and disappeared back towards the entrance. Leaving behind a confused, and slightly (okay majorly) hurt twenty-two year old who had finally gotten a taste of what she knew she could never have.

Ugh.