"I'll stay here with you tonight," Raphael said, stepping into my room via the window, having returned from radioing his brothers and updating them on everything we'd discovered. I laid sprawled on my bed after a refreshing shower, no longer worried for Liv's wellbeing when I found her soundly asleep in her room.

I blew out a breath and turned my head to smile gratefully at him.

"Okay…thanks." And I felt more at ease for the first time since…well, since I met Leonardo and promised to keep his secret.

"Leo wanted to say that he's sorry for how he acted." I scoffed.

That's bullshit. I'm not even the one who deserves an apology.

"And I'm guessing he never apologized to you?" I muttered, beginning to get really fed up with Leo.

"No."

I was prepared to argue and insist that he deserved an apology from his brother since he did nothing wrong, but with that single word I could tell that he was done talking about it. Raphael strode into my closet and flicked on the lights, searching for the blanket he knew resided there. I would have gotten it earlier myself but I didn't like him sleeping on the floor when I had a whole queen bed to myself.

"You know, you don't have to sleep on the floor," I said. "If you want, you can sleep on the other side of my bed." Raphael silently replied to my offer by switching my closet's light off and exiting with my Jasmine blanket in-hand. I almost laughed at the sight.

"I'm fine with sleeping on the floor," he insisted. I frowned but tossed him some pillows anyway and let him be. The air between us was awkward, to say the least. It wasn't like last time where we laid in a comfortable silence. No, it was like neither of us wanted to say anything in fear of starting an argument.

One of us has to say something, and I know it won't be Raph. I wracked my brain trying to conjure something that would start a conversation or at least alleviate some of the awkwardness. What were we talking about last? And a lightbulb seemed to go off in my head.

"Your turn," I whispered, hoping he'd catch on and recognize the game I was attempting to reignite. He didn't say anything for a long time, making me begin to believe he really didn't want to talk, or even be here for that matter.

But at last, he spoke.

"Are you okay?"

I opened my mouth to laugh and say yes, but then my mind flashed to earlier in the night when my body had frozen in a fear I'd believed to have gotten over years ago, and the steadily growing horror in knowing that the Footclan was somehow using me, and the terror I'd felt for Olivia as I desperately raced into my apartment, praying that I wouldn't find her murdered or kidnapped or crying in the midst of a ransacked home all because of me. I wanted to say no.

But then I remembered how Raphael had starting running even before me when I'd mentioned my sister, and how—unlike his older brother—he wasn't angry about the Footclan incident. I recalled how he'd been the one to bring the tantō and throw it to me in case I had to defend myself, and how he'd decided to stay the night to ensure my sister and I would be safe. I remembered how he was the first one to look away, to avoid a fight between him and his brother so he could bring me home safely. And now, as I realized that the biggest question circling through his mind concerned my wellbeing, I knew I was okay with him.

"Yeah," I murmured, smiling softly to myself, "I'm okay."

And just like that, as if my answer held some sort of power, the stress between us instantly vaporized.

"Okay, my turn," I shifted onto my stomach to look down at him. "Can you carve me something?" Raphael froze, then he met my gaze in surprise, then a huge smile slowly formed on his face.

"Like what?" A million different ideas were running through my brain, but I just shrugged and said,

"Surprise me." My curiosity to see what he'd come up with overrode my desire to choose for myself. Besides, I wasn't even sure if I could decide on just one. I waited patiently for him to ask his question, and by the time he did, my eyelids were beginning to feel heavy.

"So what's your favourite colour?" My mind flashed back to a night only a week ago when I'd asked him the same question. I grinned tiredly and recited exactly what he'd said to me with a yawn.

"Is this your poor attempt at a conversation?"

"Yeah," he chuckled. Despite my exhaustion, I decided to have a little fun.

"Well I don't recall you making it easy for me, so start guessing."

"...Black?"

"Oh my god," I laughed, "am I really so boring that I wear that much black?"

"No, that was a half-assed guess," he admitted.

"You're painful," I muttered. "It's red." His mischievous smile faltered due to disbelief, but quickly grew larger.

"What?" I asked, matching his smile. "Why are you so surprised?" He shrugged.

"You don't strike me as a red person." I recoiled slightly and snorted.

"You make it sound like I'm committing a crime."

"I'm just surprised." Something in his expression and voice told me there was more than just surprise, but I just arched a knowing brow and voiced my next question.

"Do you like to knit?" He scoffed.

"Noway. Well, actually–wait. How do you know about that!?" He demanded, but I was too busy laughing to answer. "It's not funny," he muttered, obviously annoyed. "It's not like I do it for fun, it's just a punishment." I could feel his glare burning into me as I attempted to calm my bouts of laughter.

"How do you even know about that?" Raph snapped, once I'd composed myself enough to refocus on our conversation.

"My ingenious mind," I replied with a sweet smile, mimicking him once again. His glare briefly wavered with uncertainty, allowing me to see it was just a forced mask and that he wasn't really mad at me, so I broadened my teasing smile and continued.

"I'm not as stupid as I look, you know." He watched me in slight annoyance.

"Are you done or do you wanna punch me, too?" Raph asked, his flat tone matching his expression.

"Nope," I shook my head. "I'm done. Your turn." I bit my lip to keep myself from exploding with more laughter. Just the idea of him talking about how little or how much he enjoyed knitting was absolutely hilarious considering how macho he usually was. Raph pondered his question for a while, steadily making me more anxious.

"What do you really think of me and my family?" I frowned and opened my mouth to answer, but he cut me off gruffly. "And no bullshit, Raiya." He caught my gaze with blazing green eyes. "I'm serious."

It took a lot of willpower to keep from snapping at him that they were probably the most incredible people I'd ever met. And I had to remind myself that Raphael had believed himself to be a monster his whole life, and that it must be difficult for him to suddenly trust the drastically different words of someone else, even if he desperately wanted to.

"You guys are weird," I admitted, keeping my expression sincere. "And I love how weird you are because I feel like I fit in and I finally found my place. You guys are different and fun and incredible and honestly, I'm really glad I met you because my summer has never been this interesting before. It feels like my life's gotten a whole lot brighter ever since I ran into Leo. And that's also why I think you guys deserve so much more than the world has given you because you're nothing like monsters, and New York City does not deserve to have people like you to protect them, cuz most New Yorkers are total assholes. I also think that if people would take a minute to just meet you guys, then they'd understand how amazing you guys really are. So yeah, I really, really like you guys." I stared directly into his emerald eyes, hoping to convey just how genuine my words were so he'd finally understand. "A lot," I finished, somewhat dramatically but it was definitely necessary.

Raphael remained as stone-faced as usual. The only evidence of any emotion being the shine in his relieved eyes and a slight, thank-you nod. I returned the gesture, plus a small smile that in turn caused the corner of his mouth to perk slightly in a crooked, half-grin. With a warm twinge, I felt my heart jump in my chest. And right then, I wished for nothing more than to hug Raphael fiercely and thank him for being him and being with me, because it was times like these—with him—that I loved to look back on and smile contagiously simply from the brief recollection.

"So what do you think of me?" I asked, deciding it was only fair. And plus, I was ridiculously curious, so there was no way I'd pass up this rare opportunity.

But the moment those words left my mouth I noticed a flicker of fear pass through Raph's body, but he immediately relaxed almost as quickly as he'd tensed up.

"I think you're the weirdest person ever, but it's cool. You're funny, and annoyingly stubborn and determined, but you also seem to make everyone around you happier, somehow." He took a deep breath, as if building up enough force to break through any remaining fear that was holding him back. "Including me," he admitted. "I dunno how you do it, but I really like being around you. I feel like you understand me better than my brothers, and I'm grateful to have you to talk to all the time. I'm also really glad you tracked down Leo, I just wish I hadn't been such a jerk to you." He chuckled and shook his head slightly before locking eyes with me. "You're strong as hell, Raiy. And crazy fearless. It scares the hell out of Leo cuz you're so much like me, and it drives me crazy because I'm supposed to be the badass but I can't help but admire your fire all the time instead." I flashed him a wicked grin and folded my arms in front of me to rest my chin on them while I listened in interest.

"You bring out this side of me that I've been trying to hide all my life, and that's what I love about you the most. You're the first person who kept digging and wanted me to be me. I dunno how or why, but you put up with my dick moves and jerk attitude and everything, and you never gave up on me. You're just this incredible, talented, fiery girl that drives me absolutely crazy. It's kind of a shame that you hate people so much cuz nobody's ever gonna get a chance to know you like I do." My grin was officially tearing my face apart.

"I know you really don't like hugs," I said quietly, "and neither do I, but I'm gonna anyways." Before he could protest, I launched myself off the edge of my bed and tackled him none too gently. Though the guy was practically steel and rarely felt a thing, so I felt no remorse and fiercely wrapped my arms around his neck. His whole body vibrated with laughter as his arms immediately encircled me in a secure embrace.

And I couldn't believe Raphael was actually hugging me—or that I was hugging him. Truthfully, I'd taken myself a bit by surprise there, but I didn't regret my actions in the least because we fit together so perfectly it seemed as if we were two, reunited puzzle pieces. And I decided right away that this was officially comfier than my bed, and that I did not want to move. It felt like I was being wrapped up in a warm, muscly cocoon of safety that smelled absolutely wonderful…and had an unusually rapid pulse and breathing pattern.

I smirked, lifting my head off his chest to look him in the eye. "Do I make you nervous, Raphael?" I asked, raising a teasing brow.

He scoffed. "No."

Despite his denial, my expression morphed into a grin, having—surprisingly enough—become quite adept at seeing through the mutant's many masks. Throwing away his poorly presented guise, Raph chuckled and shifted his grip on me, which gave me a moment's warning before he shoved me off of him. I sighed, turning my head to look at him in an unimpressed manner.

"That was rude," I breathed.He just shrugged, which prompted me to punch his arm, then immediately roll out of reach with an evil laugh to avoid his retaliating fist. I was actually fairly impressed with my reflexes, and decided I couldn't let this opportunity escape me.

"That was a good try, tortoise."

"Tortoise!? I swear–!"

"Shhhh!" I hurriedly hushed him after recalling that we shouldn't risk waking my sister. "Olivia's asleep," I hissed in reminder, getting to my feet and hopping deftly over Raphael to return to the warmth of my bed.

"You're impossible," he grumbled, crossing his arms and glaring up at me. Though the amused glint in his eyes betrayed his obviously feigned demeanour of annoyance.

"Your turn," I prompted, my body far from tired and hoping for something to keep me busy for as long as I remained that way. Though Raphael's silence led me to believe I'd annoyed him to the point of him ignoring me, which was unfortunate considering how ridiculously alive I felt in the absolute dead of night.

"Why do you hate people?" He asked, more curious than anything else. I laughed. Isn't it obvious?

"Because they're all idiots," I replied, blowing away irritating strands of hair that'd fallen in front of my eyes. "What about you?"

"…I don't hate them," he argued, though quite poorly. "I just don't like that we have to risk our necks to protect people who'd just scream and kill us the moment they were given the chance to." I wanted to protest, but knew it would prove useless since he guessed right about most people. Instead, I reminded him it was once again his turn.

"Shouldn't you be going into grade eleven, not grade ten?" I blinked in surprise at the terrapin.

How does he know that? I didn't tell any of them... so he must've figured it out on his own. It took me a few moments to collect my thoughts and refocus on the present. I was just so impressed with how closely Raph had to have been listening to pick up on such a minuscule detail of my life. I coughed to clear my throat before answering.

"Yeah, but I failed grade seven and had to redo it." I shrugged and forced the pathetic explanation from my mouth. "It was the year we, uh…moved here."

The year she died. The year my life seemed to gradually fall apart piece by piece before Olivia managed to save me.

Raphael nodded solemnly, conscious that there was much, much more to it than what I'd let on. He knew it was more than just 'the year we moved here'. And I was eternally grateful that his constant understanding saved me from the discomfort and anguish an explanation—however brief or lengthy—wrought upon me.

Warmth blossomed in my chest like a flame fanned ever brighter and ever higher, causing a smile to alight upon my lips. I felt this overwhelming urge to shift the mood of the conversation to something more lighthearted, and I had just the thing to do it. My laughter just about escaped my mouth before my words could.

"Do you have a tail?" I knew all turtles had tails, but I wasn't entirely sure about mutant turtles. Especially Raphael—the intimidating and oddly attractive ninja guy with a ridiculously cocky attitude. Just the idea of him having a tail seemed absolutely absurd and only made me question the possibility even further; so I decided to coordinate an investigation. He sighed heavily before answering.

"I'm a goddamn turtle Raiya, so yes, I have a tail. And I'm not showing it to you."

I snickered knowingly. "Why not?"

"Because I'm not showing you my ass!" My snickers quickly escalated to full blown laughter, and I had to contain it as best I could to keep Olivia from waking up.

"Are you insecure, Raphael?" I teased, eliciting another annoyed groan from the turtle which only made it more difficult to keep my laughter under control.

"I hate you," he muttered, blowing a long breath out through his nose. "I really, really hate you."

I flashed Raph an overly broad grin, aware that he felt quite the opposite.

AN: AHHHHHH WELL THAT WAS CUTE AF ! I FCKING LOVE THESE CUTIES

For once I actually kinda like how this chapter turned out lol so please review and let me know what you all though of it!

Also, if you guys are enjoying TSS so far and happen to be fans of my writing, you should consider checking out my Spider-Man fanfic The Unsaveable Girl. I'd appreciate it a ton :)

Thanks for being freaking awesome! Love you guys!