8
With a groan of protest, the chrome handle turned and the shower head sputtered to life. The frigid water warmed quickly and curls of steam stretched upward to spill over the boundaries of the bathing area. Surrounded by the stirring fog, Leonardo stood beneath the stream. Head hanging, he leaned his hands against the slick wall of the shower as the water cascaded over his body. The heat eased the tension in his muscles and he rolled his loosened shoulders appreciatively. If only it could rid the thoughts that ran through his mind.
Despite his best effort, the leader couldn't focus on anything other than the events that had unfolded over the last few hours. The hushed voices still whispered in his ear, the gentle touches still lingered on his skin, and the satisfying pleasure still burned within him. But the most vexing sensation of all was the visions. Eyes opened or closed, the only thing he could see was Raphael – above him, beside him, behind him – as the red-banded turtle made him experience bliss he never believed he would know.
Reaching for his bottle of body wash, Leo squeezed a suitable amount onto a bath sponge. Tiny, white suds clung to his skin and plastron as he tried to scrub away his sins of the night. Though his flesh was made clean, his thoughts were not. Leo's cheeks flushed as he remembered how Raph had touched him and his cleansing motions slowed to imitate the tender caresses. The initial feeling of guilt that had stabbed at his conscious was overcome by an aching desire that begged to be soothed.
"Shoulda told me that ya was gonna take a shower…"
Leo's eyes flew open as a voice spoke near him. Glancing down, he realized that the emerald green hands clutching his waist were not a product of his imagination. He had been so distracted that he failed to notice another occupant had joined him in the vast, locker room-like shower. Shifting a little, Leo became fully aware of how close Raphael was when the back of his legs brushed against his brother's thighs.
"I didn't want to wake you," the leader said quietly.
It was an excuse that was sort of true. Leonardo had pried himself from Raph's embrace carefully so as not to disturb him, but it wasn't out of concern for the amount of sleep the hothead received. For over an hour, the eldest had lain awake, staring up at the ceiling as his conscious berated him for allowing this…thing…with Raph to continue. Tired and confused, the leader was desperate to escape the mental torment and felt that doing so could only be accomplished outside of his brother's presence. Leo didn't want to wake Raph up because he didn't want to be persuaded to stay.
"I wouldn't have cared…" Raph insisted. Lifting his hands, he relieved Leonardo of the soapy sponge and resumed scrubbing where his lighter-skinned brother had paused. "…specially if Idda known that this…" He moved the cleaning tool in a teasing circle around Leo's swelling groin. "…was what ya had in mind…"
The leader could hear the smugness in Raph's voice and knew his face had a smirk to match it. He cursed his body for disobeying his brain's orders to curb its excitement. Even so, his attempt to stop what was being done to him was only half-hearted as he placed his fingers on top of Raph's.
"I didn't have this in mind," he declared, tugging on the hands that held him.
Raphael's low chuckle seemed to reverberate within the confines of the shower. His arms tightened around Leo. Leaning even closer, he nuzzled the elder's neck.
"Oh, really?" the sai-wielder wondered. He began to slowly stroke his brother's slit with the sponge. "Looks like something made ya change yer mind." His lips skimmed the side of Leo's neck. "Like maybe ya started thinking 'bout me?"
Leonardo blushed furiously and he turned his head as far away from Raph's curious mouth as possible. Staring at the walls of the shower, he watched droplets of water race down the white tile and tried to ignore the attention his lower region was receiving.
"I was not."
"Liar."
The swordsman's cheeks became even redder as he was called out on his lie. He felt himself growing harder under his brother's ministrations. On the verge of pain, he still refused to drop down.
"Ya said my name," Raph murmured as he kissed his way across Leo's shoulder.
"…I…I what?"
"Ya said my name," the younger turtle repeated. Shifting his hips, his own arousal was made apparent as it brushed against Leo. "When I came in here looking for ya, I heard ya say my name…" He laughed again. "The same way ya said it last night…"
There was a discomforting feeling in the leader's chest as his heart skipped a beat. His dark brown eyes widened with shock. He couldn't remember having said anything.
"…so tell me again that ya weren't thinking 'bout me," Raph commanded as he slipped one hand between the other turtle's legs to run a finger along the underside of his tail.
A loud gasp escaped Leo and he nearly jumped out of his shell. Taking a step forward, he tried to pull free again. As he moved, Raphael spun him around so they were face to face, dropping the sponge in the process. The leader latched on to his arms as his feet slipped on the slick tile floor. Glaring, he looked up at his brother who held him steady.
"Ya can't, can ya?" the hothead asked. Slowly, he maneuvered his brother backwards until his shell hit the tiles. "Cause ya want me."
The distance between the two turtles was shrinking again. Resting his palms against the shower wall, Raphael advanced until their plastrons pressed together. For Leonardo, the heat being generated by the water was cool compared to the heat emanating from the other ninja.
"I do not," Leo denied, trying to keep a clear head.
"Liar."
"I am not."
"Fine, then yer a hypocrite."
"No…"
"Yes…"
"S-stop that…."
"Stop what?"
"Raph!" Leo said exasperatedly, pushing on the darker turtle's shoulders.
Raphael was forced to pull back from Leo's neck where he had been nibbling at the tender flesh. A wicked smile grew on his face and it seemed to set sparks blazing in his golden eyes. Removing his hands from the wall, he instead brought them to the elder's sides to drag the fingers along the line where skin met plastron.
"Ya really gotta work on articulatin' what it is ya want, Fearless," he scolded.
Leonardo trembled as one of the most sensitive areas of his body was stimulated. Raph knew how to mess with him both mentally and physically. That much was for sure. Though the few remaining bits of his control were screaming for surrender, the leader made one last effort to fight.
"What I want is to shower alone for once," Leo proclaimed.
"Then tell me ta leave. Say the words and I'm gone."
Raph's explorative digits had wandered down in search of Leo's tail. Finding the wiggling appendage, he rolled the tip between his thumb and forefinger. It was then that Leo knew the battle was lost.
"Next time I will," the katana-wielder decided.
Raphael managed to let out a snort of laughter before his mouth became otherwise occupied. Leaning forward, Leonardo smothered that arrogant smile with hungry lips while his arms wrapped around Raph's shoulders. For a moment the two stared at each other, then their eyes flickered shut as the pleasure of the kiss intensified. The hothead willing parted his lips for his brother's tongue. Wedging a knee between Leo's legs, Raph squeezed a pair of solid buttocks. Leo broke away, grunting as he was hefted up and pressed back against the tiles. Once settled, he his mouth returned to Raph's.
Before their make-out session could proceed much further, the bathroom door creaked open.
The tangled turtles froze, panic dropping on them like a bomb. With a hefty shove, Leo pushed Raph away and turned the cold water on full blast. Swearing, Raph stepped backwards to avoid the freezing rain and slipped on the discarded sponge. He landed on his tail with a loud crash.
"Raph?" Mikey's voice inquired from the other side of the curtain. "You okay?"
Drenched with icy liquid, the red-banded turtle was completely cured of any sexual desire he had moments ago. Rubbing at his bruised bottom, he looked up at his older brother and scowled. Leonardo was standing directly underneath the shower head, shivering from the cold assault. A scared look was on his face and he lingered only long enough for arousal to disappear. Stepping past his fallen sibling, he exited the shower and snatched up a towel.
"Oh, hey, Leo," the jokester greeted happily. "I didn't know you were in here. I thought Raph…"
Michelangelo was cut off by the sound of a slamming door.
"Well, good morning to you, too, mister cranky pants," Mikey grumbled staring at now sealed entryway which his eldest brother had just dashed through. "Sheesh."
Shaking his head, he finished removing his gear and pulled aside the shower curtain. He blinked in surprise upon seeing Raphael standing beneath the flood of water. The sai-wielder had quickly regained his feet and turned the shower to a more reasonable temperature. Facing the wall, he scrubbed away at his limbs, seemingly unaware of his little brother's presence.
"Hey, Raph," Mikey said as he stepped inside. "Did you fall or something?"
Raphael said nothing as he rinsed himself off. Turning, he refused to meet Mikey's gaze as he stomped out and grabbed his own towel. The orange-banded turtle winced as the door banged shut a second time.
"Geez, what is with everyone this morning?" he wondered aloud as he began the bathing ritual.
XXXX
Fully dressed, Leonardo sat at the kitchen table huddled over a cup of tea. The douse of cold water had chilled him to the core and the brewed beverage was slowly warming him again. Staring into the murky depths of his mug, paranoia ran rampant in his troubled mind. They had been so close to being caught.
"Leo?"
Had Mikey noticed anything? Would he say anything if he had?
"Leo?"
They shouldn't have been messing around in the shower.
"Leo?"
No, they shouldn't be messing around at all.
"Leonardo!"
The blue-clad terrapin jumped in his seat, shying away from the olive-green hand that was frantically waving in front of his face. Tea slopped from his cup and spattered on the table. Looking up, Leo discovered his brother Donatello watching him with a concerned expression.
"What?" Leonardo said dumbly.
"You okay?" the genius questioned. "I've been trying to get your attention for about five minutes now."
"Oh…sorry…" Leo muttered and glanced back down at the mess before him. Standing, he walked over to the sink and grabbed a wash rag. "I was just thinking."
"Must be some pretty deep thoughts," Donnie mused, eyes following his brother as he returned to wipe up his mess. "Anything you want to talk about?"
Leonardo almost laughed out loud. Biting his lip, he polished the table top. He shook his head slowly.
"You sure?"
"I'm sure," the leader assured, flashing his brother a quick smile. Grabbing his cup, he deposited it in the sink and attempted to turn the conversation. "What are you up to?"
Donnie lifted his own mug. "Coffee break. I'm working on an upgrade for the security system."
"Need any help?"
"Not right now. Maybe later though. The back-up battery for the system is almost kaput and I'd like to find a replacement sooner rather than later. I might make a run to the junkyard tonight and it always goes faster when there's more than one person looking."
"What time?"
"Ten-thirty-ish probably. It's dark enough by then." Movement caught Don's attention and he glanced towards the doorway where another brother was entering. He lifted his cup in greeting. "Morning, Raph."
Said turtle looked up from the floor. He opened his mouth to reply, but froze mid-step as he caught sight of Leonardo. Eyes narrowing, Raph promptly reversed his direction and marched out of the room without a single word.
Donatello looked over at his elder. Leonardo was staring into the sink, hands gripping the edge of the counter tightly. A deep frown pulled at the corners of his mouth.
"What are you two fighting about this time?" the purple-clad turtle demanded.
"Nothing," Leo replied as he placed his rinsed tea cup into the dishwasher.
Raising a skeptical eye ridge, Don shook his head and turned towards the coffee pot.
"You know," the genius began as refilled his cup, "the two of you really need to…"
Casting a glance sideways, Donnie's voice trailed off as he realized that Leo was no longer standing by the sink. Confused, he looked around the kitchen and spotted the blue tails of his brother's mask disappearing through the doorway.
"…stop running from your problems," he finished with a sigh.