Noises were all around me, voices, screeching. I could hear people scream, I could hear people cry loudly, I could hear them shout in panic. Footsteps far away, footsteps closing in and approaching me. Someone spoke, but I had no idea what they were saying, they were too far away.
I groan softly, and my heart jolts the moment pain runs through my body. I was numb, and yet, I hurt everywhere. My whole body ached, and my head started pounding the more I woke up.
I slowly blink my eyes open, frowning when all I saw was darkness. No.. I could see flashes of lights far away, lights directed my way. Sirens… Sirens were getting closer, multiple ones. They were coming for me. I gasp, and suddenly it all became so clear what had happened to me.
The car hitting us, I couldn't control the car anymore, and the last thing I knew was another car hitting Mikey's-
I stop immediately, feeling another jolt of panic run through me.
"Mikey?" I croak, craning my neck. I groan again, coughing painfully. There was an immense pressure on my chest, and my ribs started hurting the more I became aware of my surroundings. I blink a couple of times, and slowly, agonisingly slow my eyes get used to the darkness around me.
I swallow thickly, glancing at my youngest brother, upside down in the car with his seatbelt pressed against his body so tightly. His hair was falling down, and a small stream of blood was travelling down his head, mixing with his hair. It was only then that I realised I was upside down as well.
And Mikey wasn't awake.
"Mikey?" I ask again, ignoring the pressure building up in my head. "MIKEY!" I scream, struggling wildly. My hands flew to the release of the seat belt, but it didn't budge. Any other time I would have realised I was putting too much pressure on it because it was keeping me from crashing to the ground.
But not now, not when my little brother was upside down, unconscious with blood streaming down his face.
"Hey hey!" A foreign voice suddenly exclaimed, and I squint when light flooded our car.
"My brother! You have to help him!" I immediately scream, struggling again.
"Woah woah son, calm down" The man said, but it didn't help one bit. "What is your name?"
I glance at him, feeling tears appear in my eyes, streaming down.. streaming towards my forehead before mixing with my hair. It was strange, and it only caused me to panic more.
"Leonardo" I hiccup, far past the point of being embarrassed. "My little brother, he's not responding"
"Just calm down okay? We will help your brother" He spoke calmly, turning back for a moment and shouting something. "What is his name?" He asks.
"Mikey" I whisper, taking a shuddering breath.
"There are a few other cars who were also hit, but an ambulance is arriving right now, they're coming to help you and your brother." He spoke, and I nod shakily. "Do you know the phone number of a parent or a guardian?" I nod again, squinting slightly and telling the number of mom, the only one I really remembered.
"That's good" The man says, taking out his phone and glancing back for a moment. "The paramedics are here, they will get you out okay? I won't be far but I will call your parents so they will come here. It's all going to be alright" For some reason, I believed him when he said that.
I nod again, and I can't help but glance at Mikey again. The light disappeared for a moment and there were a few voices before the light appeared again. A shuddering breath escaped my lungs at the sight of a paramedic, and another one soon followed.
"Leonardo?" The man asks in a clear voice, I nod quickly, eyes darting to Mikey again. "My name is Alex, this is my colleague Anne. We're gonna get you out."
"Mikey first" I croak, and Anne smiles in a comforting matter.
"We have to be careful sweetie we don't know how badly he is injured." She says softly, starting to climb into the car. "Can you tell me what is hurting?" I frown slightly at the question, willing myself to focus on the pain. My whole body was aching, but it wasn't really bad.
"My chest.. it hurts to breathe, and my body's aching" I mumble, wetting my lips, and taking a shuddering breath. "My head is hurting, a lot" I add, and Anne nods softly.
"No pain in your legs, or back?" She asks me, but I shake my head. "That's good, that would be bad. I'm going to cut your seatbelt, and then Alex here will catch you so you don't hurt yourself on the glass okay?" She explains, and I nod again, limbs trembling ever so slightly at the prospect of getting out.
Anne reaches into her jacket, taking out a special knife and placing it against the seatbelt. I could feel firm hands on my shoulders, lifting me up slightly to relieve the pressure of the seatbelt on my chest. Immediately air floods my lungs, and my head spins almost painfully at the sudden rush of oxygen.
The knife easily cuts through the material of the seatbelt, and before I know it I'm gently lowered to the ground. I could feel Alex carefully guide me out of the car, until I was sitting down on something soft. A blanket or a jacket or something. But it wasn't the cold road, that was for sure.
"Come with me, I will check you over" A new voice says softly, and a hand is put on my shoulder. I jerk away quickly, shaking my head despite the pain it caused me.
"I'm not going anywhere before I know Mikey's okay" I state with a slight glare. The woman didn't know who Mikey was, but I didn't care at the moment. I was only a meter away from the car, and yet, it felt like I was so far away. Too far away.
I manage to tear my eyes away from the car, glancing around. There were police cars and ambulances everywhere around me. The whole road, except for one lane was blocked. And our car wasn't the only one. I pale significantly all of a sudden. There was another car, quite close to ours.
The whole front was crushed, glass and blood littering the road. And a body bag was being wheeled away the moment I was looking.
A soft groan suddenly escaped the car, and I was immediately up. Mikey. Pain completely forgotten I stumbled back to driver's seat of the car.
"Mikey?" I call out, wincing as glass crunched beneath my feet.
"Leo?" Mikey's groggy voice came from inside the car. I could feel Anne glance at me from the other side of the car.
"I'm here otouto, I'm here" I whisper, and Mikey groans softly. Then, he slowly opens his eyes to look at me. The side of his head was still filled with blood, and his blue eyes were dull and filled with pain. Anne looks down for a moment, before glancing at me again, and eventually Mikey.
"Mikey?" She asks, and it was only then that he seemed to realise there was something else with him. "My name is Anne, I'm going to get you out of the car okay?"
There was a silence on Mikey's part, and I'm sure he was frowning, but I just couldn't see it as he had his head turned away from me. Eventually, he nods groggy, a whine of pain leaving his throat. I wince at the sound, I never wanted to hear any of my brothers, or my family in pain.
"Can you tell me what hurts Mikey?" Anne asks softly.
"Chest" Mikey mutters, taking a raspy breath to prove his point almost. "And my knee" He silently adds after a few seconds.
Anne nods with a relieved smile on her face. "No pain in your neck or your back?" She asks.
"M'bit, sore m'stly" Mikey mumbles, and Anne nods again, taking out the knife she had also used to cut my seatbelt.
"That's good" She whispered herself. "I'm going to cut your seatbelt right now, Alex here will catch you so you won't hurt yourself more. Is that okay?"
"Get me out" Mikey whispers, turning his head back to me. "Leo get'me out" He slurred, and without thinking I stuck my arm through the car, brushing against his hand. I stifle a hiss when pain runs through my ribs but I ignore the pain. The only thing that mattered right now was comforting my little brother.
"They will Mikey, just a few seconds" I try to calm him down, and he nods shakily. I could see Alex' hands reach for Mikey's shoulders, lifting him up slightly. Then Anne cuts through the seat belt, knife quickly forgotten as she helps her colleague with getting Mikey out of the car. I was immediately up.
I could feel adrenaline slowly leaving my body, and the pain was starting to get worse but I didn't care. Mikey was set down on the ground, and someone wrapped a blanket around him.
"Leo" Mikey whispers, looking at me. He seemed more coherent, but his eyes were still clouded with pain. I groan low in my throat as I sit down, and Mikey immediately leans into me.
"I'm here Mikey we're okay" I whisper, throat tight from the tears. I was supposed to be the older brother, I was supposed to protect my younger brother. But the moment I spoke those words, I broke out into tears. I sob, burying my face in Mikey's collarbone as I hold him tight against me.
I could faintly feel a blanket being wrapped around me, but I don't pay attention to it. I can only cry, focus on Mikey's shaking form as he tried his hardest not to follow my example. I ignore the pain continuously increasing in my ribs my head starting to pound painfully with every beat of my heart.
Mikey didn't cry, but it was clear how shaken he was.
But all that mattered that we were both okay.
TMNT
"Neither of you have any broken bones, and the CT scan showed no internal bleeding" The nurse said with a bright smile. "You're both very lucky" She added, and from the side I could hear Mikey snort as the sentence.
"Very lucky" He mutters, but loud enough for us to hear it. I glance at him for a moment, anything to keep my focus off one of the nurses currently stitching my arm up.
"You are" The nurse insists, glancing at the nurse that was currently stitching up the wound on Mikey's face. "It could've been much worse. You were lucky you were wearing your seatbelt too" She pointed out, walking over to Mikey to inspect the IV that was pumping a mild sedative into his arm.
The same IV was currently in my arm, and I was grateful for it. My ribs had started to bother me more and more, and so had my head. So after the nurse rang dad if it was okay to start treatment, they gave us the painkillers and started to stitch some of the wounds, and scan for other injuries.
They had taken an X-ray of both our chests, CT scans for internal bleeding, and drawn blood.
We were currently in a separate room instead of the ER. Just for some extra privacy while we waited. Which I knew Mikey appreciated. We were both sitting on the same hospital bed, mere inches between us.
"There, all done" The nurse treating Mikey said softly, snapping off the thread, and putting the needle away. "The cut itself wasn't bad, the stitches are to minimise scarring. You'll need to come back in a few weeks to get them removed, but your parents will handle everything" He explained, and I could see the wince when Mikey heard that sentence.
Parents. Even if we all understood to whom he was referring, the word itself was still a sore subject if that made sense. Both because his biological ones were messed up serial killers, and because his current 'parents' weren't really his parents. Foster parents, but in our eyes parents nonetheless. We didn't care about formalities, but we all knew Mikey did.
The nurse treating me also finished her stitching quickly, but neatly and telling me the same applied to me in terms of taking care of the stitches and getting them removed again. It was then that someone knocked on the door. I glance at the nurse that listed our result from the scans just moments ago, and she quickly made her way to the door.
"My name is Hamato Yoshi, they said my sons are in here" A familiar voice spoke from the other side. My eyes immediately widen, and I snap my attention to the door. The nurse nods, door opening to reveal mom and dad standing there.
"Mom, Dad!" I cry out, voice cracking. They immediately ran towards the both of us, wrapping their arms around us.
"Oh my children, you are safe now, you are alright" Dad murmured while mom just sobbed happily, or maybe from relief, I didn't know.
"Leo, Mikey!" Raph's familiar voice suddenly ran through the room, and I only sobbed louder when I heard two pair of footsteps approach. More arms wrapped around the hug, and I can't help but smile shakily through the tears.
"We're okay… it's okay" I murmur, sniffling and reluctantly pulling out of the hug. Mom slowly turned to the only remaining nurse, I guess the other two had left when our family entered.
"How are they?" She asks with a soft voice. I glance to the side as Don sat down next to me, leaning into me. I allow him with a watery smile on my face. I'm careful not to move too much, to avoid ripping out my IV and to avoid agitating my ribs even more.
Raph was now sitting next to Mikey, allowing the latter to fully lean against him and wrapping an arm around him carefully, to avoid hurting Mikey. I smile despite the situation. It was so endearing to see Raph act all soft. We knew he was a big softie, but for him to display it so freely was rare.
"Leonardo hit his head pretty hard, he sustained a grade 1 concussion. He should be monitored for the first 24 hours but without complications he will recover quickly. Within days is my estimate. He didn't break any ribs, but he did bruise them so they will be sore and hurting for awhile. I will describe some painkillers for both of them. He also has a cut on his arm that needed to be stitched. They will need to be taken out in a few weeks" The nurse explained.
Mom nods, and I can see how nervous she was, glancing at us with worried looks. I just smile lazily at her, too tired right now to really speak up, and try to convince her. Especially when I knew it wouldn't work unless the nurse told her I was okay.
"Mikey hit his head as well, but no concussion we think. He did have a wound on his head that we stitched, they will also need to be removed in a few weeks. He didn't break his ribs either, but I recommend the subscription of painkillers. He hit his knee pretty hard when the car flipped, but the x-ray showed no broken bones."
Mom turned to us again, tears brimming in her eyes.
"Oh babies" She whispers, walking over to us again and pulling us in a quick hug again.
"Mom we're okay" I could hear Mikey murmur in mom's embrace. But even he couldn't suppress the groan of pain that escaped his mouth.
"I was just so worried when I got the call" She whispers, pulling out of the hug and cupping Mikey's face gently. Mikey just stayed silent, tears brimming in his eyes as he looked at mom.
"Can we take them both home?" Dad was the one to eventually ask the important question. I glance at the nurse at the question, but she smiles gently.
"You can Mr. Hamato, I will get someone qualified to release you. It shouldn't take long" She explains, looking at the clipboard in her hand. "Just remember to take it easy, make an appointment to get those stitches out, and watch Leonardo's concussion. Excuse me" She excuses herself.
Dad nods politely, watching as the nurse exits the room. He immediately turns to the both of us, walking to us but stopping inches in front of us.
"Are you both alright?" He whispers, and I knew he wanted to hear it from us instead of hearing it from a nurse. And he wasn't asking for our physical state right now he wanted to know how we were doing emotionally. I glance at Mikey for a quick second, but he was glancing at me with a tired look on his face.
He wanted me to answer it.
I shrug at the question, because really, how were we feeling? It all felt so surreal to begin with. I knew that there was a danger to driving, but I never expected to get into an incident, or flip the car upside down with someone else with me in the car. I would've never forgiven myself if it had been worse.
"I'm just… really shaken I guess" I mumble eventually, knowing dad would want a verbal answer. Dad seems satisfied with the answer glancing at Mikey.
"I'll be fine" He whispers, but he doesn't move from Raph's embrace.
We were both fine.
TMNT
I wasn't tired. No wait, scratch that, I was physically tired right now, physically exhausted. But I wasn't tired.
We were currently all sitting in the living room, not really doing anything but appreciating the fact that we were still together after the incident now four days ago. Leo and I had both been pretty shaken after the incident. We had both seen the dead bodies, hidden by the body bags, being wheeled away.
We had both realised how close we had come to dying really.
I close my eyes slowly. Mom was now carefully running his fingers through my hair, nail gently scratching my scalp and being mindful of the stitches.
It felt nice, and I felt myself relaxing fully. And I was sure that if I had been tired enough, I would've fallen asleep already.
I stiffen slightly for a moment when the phone started ringing. Mom hummed behind me, carting her fingers through my hair again.
"I will get it" Dad said, standing up. I glance at him, watching him reach for the phone we still had. A phone we also rarely used still now with the smartphones. "Hamato household" There was a short silence in the room, and I could see Leo glance at dad for a moment as well.
"I am sorry ma'am, but I cannot understand you" Dad murmured, frowning slightly. There was an inaudible response from the other side, and realisation dawned on Dad's face, and he turns to me. "Yes Cassandra, he is here" Dad voices, and my eyes widen slightly. He walks over to me, handing me the phone.
He didn't need to say who it was, because I already knew. And I had my suspicions why Cass was calling in the first place. I sit up a bit straighter, putting the phone against my ear.
"Hey Cass" I murmur.
"Mikey!" Cass yelled on the other side of the line. "My mom told what happened with the car! Are you okay?" Cassie said, voice significantly calmer. I take a breath, nodding even when I knew she couldn't see it.
"I'm okay, I bruised my ribs and hit my knee, but it's not bad" I tell her. I could hear Cassie take a shuddering breath on the other side of the line.
"I was so worried, mom told me and then you wouldn't pick up the phone, and I-" She stops herself, and I frown at the statement. My phone was still in the kitchen, and I always had it on silent. Of course I wouldn't have seen her call. "Are you both alright?" She eventually asks.
"We are Cass" I say, glancing at Leo. "Leo bruised his ribs as well, and got a mild concussion." There was a long silence, and the only thing I could hear from the other side was Cassie's soft breathing.
"I'm really glad you're alright" She whispers, and relief was all too evident in her voice. I smile gently. She didn't need to know about the nightmares I had… or rather, the increase in nightmares since the incident.
"Can't get rid of me that easily" I snicker softly, and I can hear Cassie chuckle at the remark.
"Right back at you, big bro" She says, and I can basically see the smile on her face. "Now I know you're alright, my parents and I were thinking, would you like to celebrate Christmas together?"
"You mean both our families together?" I ask, and Cass hummed on the other side of the line.
"Only if you didn't have other plans, I can understand if you have something planned already" She quickly adds, and I glance at dad with a soft smile.
"Only on the second day, dad's family's from Japan and they don't celebrate Christmas the way we do here. His family is coming over to celebrate the new year instead" I tell her, and dad nods. Because I had never actually experienced Christmas with this family before the upcoming one.
I was taken in in January after all. But they had all told me stories about how they celebrated Christmas in Japan. Here it was a time for families to come together, but in Japan that was during the new year instead. Christmas was a time for friends and couples instead, and because Dad's family still lived in Japan, they followed that tradition here as well.
Dad's father was fully Japanese, while his mother wasn't. She had been living in Japan since her 10th birthday, because her parents moved to Japan, but she was still from Irish descent. They adopted the Japanese culture, and dad grew up with those traditions as well before he met mom.
I mean, he first met Leo's biological mom when she travelled to Japan, and he eventually moved to America for her. Leo was partially Japanese, but for the most part Caucasian.
Mom, Tang Shen, was also Japanese from birth, but her family tree got a little complicated as well. Her grandfather from her father's side was Chinese, her grandmother Japanese. But her father moved to the America when he was really young. He grew up in this country, and married a woman here.
Just like dad, she was only half Asian. But whereas dad grew up in Japan, and with Japanese customs, mom did not. Mom's side of the family celebrated Christmas like any other American family, and met up with the family on the second day of Christmas each year.
The first day however… was open because dad's side of the family didn't celebrate Christmas.
"Oh I didn't even know" Cas breathes out on the other line. "Is that.. is that a yes then? We don't have anything planned for the first day either yet" I put a hand over the phone.
"Cassie asks if we want to celebrate Christmas with her family, is… is that okay?" I ask softly, glancing at mom, who was still sitting next to me. She smiles at the questions, tugging a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
"Of course it is, I would love to meet your sister" She says, glancing at dad for just a second, but he doesn't object either.
"Mom said it was okay" I tell her, and I could basically hear Cass smile on the other side of the line.
"Great! I will talk with my mom about the diner, she usually cooks dinner cause she's a professional cook, but I don't know how your family wants to celebrate..?" I smile at the rambling, and the slightly nervous voice on the other side.
"This is my first time with them as well remember?" I chuckle, and Cassie hums at the sentence. "But I'll talk with my parents as well."
"Oh, and Mikey?" Cass says softly.
"Yea?" I answer her, frowning slightly. There was a short silence from the other side, a silent breath being expelled.
"I love you, Kiki. And I'm really glad you told me." She tells me, so much sincerity behind her statement that I could feel my chest tightening.
"I love you too, Cassie." I whisper. There was another silence, before Cassie chuckles from the other side.
"Bye Kiki." She says.
"Bye, little sis." I chuckle, before she hangs up. I glance at mom, who just smiled at me. I smile back, leaning against her side again. She pulls me closer, and her fingers find their way into my hair again.
"I love you too, little one." Mom murmurs, kissing the top of my head. I just snuggle closer to her side, like I was a small child.
"Love you too, mom" I mumble, closing my eyes and allowing my mind to drift again.
TMNT
So I know from personal experience that not all countries celebrate Christmas the same way. I know we don't. Christmas isn't that big here in the Netherlands, as we celebrate Sinterklaas instead. So I wanted to make sure how Japan celebrated it, before writing something about it that wasn't true.
So I hope it's somewhat accurate to how it's truly celebrated. Next chapter there will be some mentions of it, so if you see something that is wrong, or anything you know, don't be afraid to let me know!
(I'm not even sure Americans celebrate Christmas two days…?)