It had been a week since they had brought Mikey home, and during that week, he had been put on strict rest by Dr. Donnie, wanting to make sure that his youngest mate healed and didn't make his injuries worse again like he had when he had fled their lair the first time. During this past week, Leo had been trying to find more ways to help the orange clad turtle regain some of his lost confidence. He knew it would be a long road, but he wanted to help his brother every step of the way.
His first thought was extra one-on-one training in the dojo. The idea had been quickly dismissed. Not only was he still healing from injuries, but the idea was to increase his self-confidence, not tear it down. With his current fragile state of mind, Leo was concerned that any training, as well meaning as it was meant, would be seen as Mikey not being good enough. That his older brother, his leader, didn't see him as being able to keep up with them. Perhaps he could revisit the idea in the future, he did think it had merit, and he also loves sparring with the orange clad turtle (he was quick and agile and most times it ended up leading to some very good times),but his Little One would need to heal, both physically and mentally first.
He finally settled on simply spending time with Mikey. It had become an unspoken rule that Mikey was to never be left alone. One of them were always with him keeping him occupied during the day, and he shared someone's bed, usually Leo or Raphs as Donnie was generally caught up in his work. So he started joining Mikey in activities he knew the youngest enjoyed. Videos games, baking, and just relaxing with him, whether it was watching T.V. or reading while Mikey worked on his art or read a comic book. It seemed to be working, at least to some extent.
At first, he was tense, shooting Leo side eyes. Wondering when the other shoe would drop, if I'll change my mind and tell him that he was right, he should leave, Leo scowled at his thoughts. He knew it wasn't going to be an easy road to turn Mikey's mind set around, that there was no magic wand solution, but it hurt him to see his mate like this, to know that in some way, he had unintentionally caused wounds so deep that the only solution that Mikey saw was to leave, thinking they were better off without him. What he doesn't realize is that without him, we'd fall apart. His youngest brother was truly the one that kept them all together. He always knew emotionally what his brothers needed, when to push and when to back off and give them space. He forced them to spend time together, when the three eldest turtles natural inclination was to be on their own. Mikey was definitely more social than any of them put together. And we're better for it.
As the week wore on, his youngest lover became more and more relax, allowing Leo glimpses of how he was before. Today though, seemed to be different. Leo found himself with his eyes more on the orange clad turtle who was sitting on the floor in front of the table they used in the common area, rather than the book in his hands, sensing the younger became more and more frustrated and agitated as the minutes ticked by. He watched as Mikey threw down the pencil he was using the shade the picture in front of him in frustration, one hand raising to wipe the tears that had started to fall.
"I'm such an idiot, it's such a simple picture, why can't I get the shading right?" he muttered to himself, staring at the picture angrily. Frowning, Leo put the book that was all but forgotten in his hands down and went to kneel beside Mikey, taking the younger's hands in his.
'Hey now, you're not an idiot," the leader said softly. He waited until Mikey looked up at him before continuing.
"But I am, this should be so easy, but I can't do it. I'm not smart like you or Donnie." Mikey's lips trembled as he tried to hold back more tears he could feel. He hated crying in front of Leo, hated his leader seeing him so weak and pathetic.
"Michelangelo," Leo's said, his heart breaking a little bit more hearing the self-deprecating words coming from his Little One's mouth. "There are many types of intelligence. I excel in tactics and Donnie excels...well Donnie's just really good at a lot of the sciencey stuff," he grinned, thinking about all the stuff that the purple clad turtle did that Leo would never be able to understand in a million years. "Raph is really good at his body building stuff, he knows how to maximize his macros and workout regimes to push himself to his limit. Each of those are different types of intelligence. However, I can't do what they do, so does that make me stupid?" He waited patiently for Mikey's answer, only continuing when his brother shook his head no.
"Good, now you on the other hand. You're really great at art. You understand how the light would hit something and know where to put the shadows, you understand colour theory, colours that compliment and contrast. The art that you do takes a lot of smarts. You're also good with cooking. You know what flavours work well together and which ones don't. That's another kind of intelligence. There are many different types of intelligence Mikey. Just because the areas that you excel in differ, that doesn't make you an idiot. You do plenty that myself, Raph or Don cannot do." Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the picture in question. There didn't seem to be any wrong with it, in Leo's opinion, it looked amazing. Mikey just didn't have any faith in his skills right now.
"Still, the stuff you guys do is important. Your tactics keep us alive in battle, Raph's work out keeps him strong so he can protect us, and Donnie's sciency stuff makes our lives more comfortable and helps us in so many ways," Mikey protested, frowning. Leo smiled sadly, gather Mikey into his arms and kissing his head softly.
"I wish you saw yourself the way I do. I love your art, I love that you can express yourself in a way that I can't. I love how you always know how to cheer everyone up, how you know what you need." Trailing kisses down his brothers head, he stopped by his ear, whispering the next part. "I love your tail, and how responsive you are in my bed." He placed a kiss on his cheek, before kissing his lips softly. "Let me show you how much I love you." He hovered, lips barely touching Mikey's waiting for his answer. He didn't want to push his youngest, they hadn't been intimate before the battle with Krang, but he desperately wanted to show his orange banded lover how much he loved him.
"Yes," Mikey pleaded, having started to melt with every kiss his lover had given him. He wanted this, wanted to feel Leo around him, wanted to feel loved. Grinning, Leo picked him up in his arms and walked towards his bed, carrying his smaller brother in his arms. He didn't care if he had to spend every day for the rest of his life proving to Mikey that he loved him. He would gladly do it.