Close Call

"Ah... A-CHOO."

A sneeze brought Casey Jones back to the present. He looked at the clock on the wall, frowning.

It had been hours now, since their mutant friends had left, with no sign that they'd be returning any time soon. Not that this fact surprised the man, but he'd still been hoping.

He looked down at himself. He'd dressed up for tonight; put the suit on, bought the flowers. He'd remembered everything. Though, he was pleasantly amused when he got to April's house to see her in more casual gear. Missed communication on both their parts, but he appreciated the gesture on her part.

Plus, she looked totally hot. Despite all this, they were just getting ready to head out for the night.

And then the knock on the door.

It's always a knock on the door, isn't it?

She'd gone to greet her unexpected visitors, and he heard it: 'Guys...' Her voice was slightly annoyed, but it turned to concern when Don came into her view. He looked awful. Sighing internally, Casey knew immediately that they wouldn't be going out that night, and it was confirmed just moments later when April repeated what had just been going through his head.

"Of course Don can stay here." She said sympathetically. "I mean, we weren't going anywhere anyway." She continued, her eyes meeting his for a split second, her tone almost weary. She put her hands on the turtle's shoulders comfortingly, and he sneezed miserably. Exasperated, the man leaned down to the turtle, frowning. "Bro, you are seriously cramping my style, here." The miserable turtle let out a low, "Sorry," letting April lead him to the couch.

And he knew the mutant meant what he said. He was truly sorry. The turtle had never had a vindictive streak in him that said he'd enjoy ruining Casey's date with April.

Though, sometimes the man had his doubts about that.

A few sneezes brought Casey out of his thoughts, and he smacked a hand against his forehead, frustrated. He looked first at the couch, where Don sat, beads of sweat covering his forehead. Then his gaze turned to April, who looked worriedly back at him. Groaning out loud, Casey walked up to Don, pushing him down into a lying position.

"Come on, sickly mutant ninja turtle." He covered the uncomfortable turtle with a blanket. April gave him an appraising look, then sat on the couch next to Don.

He stood, watching the pair. She watched Don lay with his eyes closed, her face etched in worry. Casey sighed again, but no one noticed. Her focus was on her friend, their date completely forgotten. A slight wave of anger passed through him, watching her watch him. He was torn between feeling concerned for the poor turtle and... not. The turtles, Raph especially, had befriended him, taking him into their home unconditionally. They had been loyal friends, even saving his life a few times and he always enjoyed the adventures that he'd been party to.

And April... Through them, he'd met her. She was beautiful and smart. Way too good for him, he realized, yes. Don had always shown slightly more protectiveness over her than the rest of them, and that was saying a lot. They had everything in common, save for the very fact that he had a shell and she did not. He was smart, and they played ideas off each other effortlessly; able to have conversations that went on for hours, ceaselessly sharing everything they had, and then some.

And, Don had gotten there first.

The turtle had never made a move, that Casey knew of, though he never expected he would. Don was too shy, and too loyal to everyone to ever risk changing what was seemingly the perfect relationship.

But still, Casey sometimes found times when Don would unsuspectingly intercept a moment between April and himself, whether intentional or not. And April would lovingly hug or kiss him freely, sending a jealous flare through Casey that burned white hot.

Suddenly the electricity went out, sending the small group into almost pitch black darkness. April turned to Casey, telling him where to find her flashlight, and he left for her room without question. On his way out of the room, he could hear Don groan in pain. As he fumbled through her dresser, he could hear them talking lowly in the other room, their soft conversation sometimes punctuated by a moan from Don. Thinking about them sitting there together made Casey fumble his movements, and he knocked a lamp off the top of the dresser.

"Oops! My bad." He called out, not a bit sorry he interfered in their talk. He felt guilty then, also, and as he moved to pick it up, he dropped it again. April entered the room with him, then. "Sorry, April." He said from his kneeling position. And he was sorry. About the lamp.

Don wailed softly from the other room, and a moment later they both heard him weakly call for their help: "Casey. April. Help."

With a glance at each other, April grabbed the flashlight and they both ran to Don. The couch was empty now, and slightly disheveled.

"Don?" April moved the light around the room, finally falling on their friend. Don huddled in the corner, trembling slightly. As the light hit him, he turned to look at them. His eyes glowed a violent, unnatural red, and they both gasped in horror.

This night was certainly not going as planned.