"What were you thinking?!"

Raphael's expression of offense slowly became one of confusion. Only minutes ago he was awoken from deep sleep by totally in-raged April, bursting into his room. The sleep-drunk turtle rubbed his eyes, sitting up in his hammock.

"Raph!? Did you hear me?"

"The whole lair can hear ya', April!" Raphael's brain was hard at work trying to recollect what might be the reason of her super-wind-up state. Last night everything seemed to be lovey-dovey. He blinked at the bright light irritating his eyes, then turned his emerald gaze to the source of his unpleasant awakening. The redhead was angrily pacing across his room, her face wet from recent sobbing, her eyes swollen.

"What happened, April? Why ya' so upset?" Raphael was suddenly frightened that something seriously bad had happened.

"OMG!" – she raged, "What happened? You're asking me what happened?! Seriously, Raphael?! What have you done?! Now it's over… I don't… Oh, god! I don't know what to do?"

April's crying and general edgy state, that in any other occasion would surely make the hothead turtle very uncomfortable (most likely resulting in his quick departure, escaping this whole situation), this time, considering what happened between them last night, made him jump off to the floor, catch the hysterical woman in his arms and embrace her, pinning her to his chest: "It's okay… everythin's gonna be fine!" – he chanted, comforting her, but mostly trying to convince himself.

She must have talked to Casey! This is happening…

April tried to wiggle out and away from his strong grip, shaking her head, twisting her arms and slapping him. But it was all in vain. Raphael held her strong, immovable and perfectly still. When she ceased trying to escape, he loosened his embrace just enough to pick into her eyes: "April… I had to tell'im! I mean, it's Casey!" – he said softly.

The woman had a very miserable and exhausted expression on her face: "What exactly did you tell him, Raph?"

Stroking her messy hair and gently pressing his face to the top of her head, Raphael calmly answered: "The truth…"

April breathed out and pushed him away. Settling on the floor in the corner, she hid her face in her hands and cried… and cried…

Michelangelo was humming to himself, indulged in his morning routine, masterfully preparing everything needed: coffee – check, pancakes – check, scrambled eggs – check, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers – check, roasted slices of bread – check… what else, what else..? Everything seemed to be ready.

He boiled some water especially for Leo's traditional tea, and even grilled some cheese bites to spoil master Splinter. Then, when he was just about to go see whether Donnie had crushed in the lab again last night (so that he could AGAIN save his shell from Leo's usual scolding), he grabbed the coffee pot and... sudden hurried footsteps made him look in the direction of the corridor. Muttering something incomprehensible, Raphael appeared on the footstep, and immediately startled, froze meeting Mikey's surprised stare.

"Morning, bro!" Coffee in one hand and freshly toasted poptart in another, with an apron around his waist, the freckled turtle smiled at his big brother, "Up so early? The practice doesn't start until nine…"

"Shush, Mikey! You haven't seen me here, got it?!"

"O...kay" Mike was a little confused, but all the same playfully winked toward Raphael, while the hothead groaned in annoyance, rushing past his little brother toward the sink.

That's when Mike noticed the tears. His older brother started washing his face, splashing water everywhere! Raphael never cried. Well, not since they were babies, anyway…

"Um... Raph? Are you okay?" Mikey carefully placed the steaming coffee on top of the table (Donnie can wait, besides that way he'll get those totally needed extra minutes of sleep) and fumbling his new "kiss the chef" apron (a present from April), came closer: "Raph?"

"Mikey!" – Raphael slammed both fists into his brother's plastron, stopping him in place: "I said: you haven't seen me!"

Michelangelo raised a brow and at the same time squinted, observing his older sibling closely, "Hmmm… you're so not okay! What's up?" He carefully removed Raphael's fists away from his chest and offered him the corner of his apron to wipe his wet face. Raphael opposed at first, but then sighing, and muttering under his nose: "Leo and Don better never hear about this!" took the offered corner and brutally scrubbed his cheeks with it, pulling the whole apron and inevitably Mike with it, since they were still attached to each other. The orange turtle giggled, pushing away, but suddenly realized he was drawn into a hug.

"Raphie? Are you hugging me?! You are hugging me!" With quite a tremendous amount of confusion, Mike returned Raphael's rarely acquired embrace. But as much as he was enjoying this uncommon moment of tenderness with his usually crude sibling, the youngest brother knew something really bad must have happened to bring this on: "What happened, dude?"

Raphael kept still and didn't make a sound, not letting go either.

"Um, dude?" Mikey began seriously worrying about his brother: "Talk to me, Raph…"

"It's April…" The quick snappy words were muttered into Mike's neck, "…and Casey!"

"Wow… uh oh!" Big blue eyes blinked and, pushing a bit away, looked into the green glittery ones, "What did you do?"

"Me?!" Recoiling, Raphael hit his little brother on his shoulder with a fist, "Why is it always me?"

"Okay… then who?" Mikey was rubbing the sore spot on his shoulder, while trying to read what the other was feeling, "Did Casey do something to make you mad?"

"What's going on here?" Leonardo's voice made both of them flinch in surprise.

Groaning, Raphael let Mikey go and landed on one of the chairs, hiding his face in his fists and muttering something that sounded like cursing.

"Nothing!" Mikey's face projected innocence and total openness.

"Didn't sound like nothing…" - said the leader, turning his face toward Raphael: "Raph? Care to explain?"

"I don' have'ta explain anything to ya', LEO!" The sound of Raphael's voice was distorted and dimmed by the presence of his fists at his mouth. Only the last two syllables, his brother's name, were pronounced into the room with the full force of his vocal cords, since Raphael suddenly jerked his head up.

Sensing the inevitable, Mikey stepped forward: "Leo, seriously, it's nothing… I just asked Raph to help me out here…" But his brothers both looked at him simultaneously and dismissively, so Mikey didn't have a choice but to shut his mouth, and grabbing the coffee, slowly sneak out of the kitchen.

Left alone, Leonardo silently walked over and sat opposite Raphael, fixedly staring at him.

"It's… it's not my fault…" Raphael slightly kicked at the table-leg, "It's nobody's fault…"

Leo waited, not saying a word.

"What?" – snapped Raphael all of a sudden, "How is it MY fault that April called me and said all of those things..?! What was I supposed to do, Leo?!"

"April?" Leonardo was trying to make sense of all this… nonsense, "What exactly happened, Raph?"

Raphael sighed, turning his eyes to the floor, and slammed his elbows on top of the table, leaning his head on them face down: "She called and sounded really upset… I tried calming her ova' 'da phone, but it was no good… and then she tells me to come ova'… and that she's done with Casey! And she sounded so hurt, Leo…" He sighed again.

Leo shook his head disapprovingly, then calmly asked: "Raph, what did you do..?"

Silence…

"Just tell me, Raphael…"

The hothead slowly raised his head about to answer, but immediately locked his eyes with approaching Donatello. The brainiac's expression was inflexible as he relentlessly looked at his two brothers at the table. Raph's breath caught up in his throat and he couldn't move his tongue. As it turned out, he was utterly unable to face the whole reality of his actions. He was unable to face Donnie… unable to say it to his face…

But undoubtedly everyone in the room, including Mikey who was constrainedly standing at the door behind Don's shell, already knew…

A few hours earlier...

"Hi, April!" Raphael's over-cheerful voice greeted the redhead as she opened her window to let the turtle in. She was in her bath-robe, her hair in a little bun with several stripes loose surrounding her weepy irritated expression.

Raphael noticed that she's been crying, but acted as if he didn't, smiling widely at her grumpy face and angry impatient gestures. He was here without his father's consent or his brother's knowledge. It was the middle of the night and since they were "very young and knew nothing of the dangers of the world above", they were not allowed to leave the lair and walk around the city alone, not to mention without notifying anyone about their whereabouts. Raphael didn't care. He knew only one thing – April needed him, she was hurt, and nothing could stop him from getting to her.

He shut the window and pulling his sai out of his belt, secured them on the coffee table. Then without saying a word he took hold of the woman's shoulders and gently lad her to the couch. There he carefully placed her in his embracing arms as she sobbed, and ranted, and raged, and sobbed some more…

In order to make her feel a little better, Raphael softly petted her on the head. It was kind of an involuntary gesture. He didn't know what else to do, but it seemed to work on Mikey every time, so he figured why not try it on his human friend as well. The response was nothing like he expected. April let out a short soft wheeze and, for some reason, let her hair loose. Then she got up and left without saying a word, returning only minutes later with a bottle of vodka in her hands. She sat right back at his side, pressing into him and politely offering him a sip. Taking it, Raphael couldn't think… he couldn't believe how close their bodies were. He could smell her perfume and, if he only wished it, run his fingers through her hair. He raised his hand to do just that, but hesitated freezing in his place. April was hurt, she was a mess… now getting drunk…

They sat together like this for a long while. He – offering her his energy and devotion, she – hungrily drinking it up and crying her heartache away.

"April" - Raphael said eventually, "Maybe you should get some sleep…"

"Yeah…" Deeply sighing, the woman snuggled against him even more, ramming her back into his carapace and placing her face into the curve of his neck.

Raphael's heart missed a beat when her warm breath tickled his skin. He took another sip of that vodka. That was definitely not what he meant by 'getting some sleep'. It took all of his concentration and (years of) ninjitsu training to remain outwardly calm (thank you, Splinter!). But when April's fingers, taking the bottle from him, unintentionally brushed over his chest all of sudden, he was a complete mess. Utterly confused, Raphael didn't know what to do. The alcohol in his system, even though not completely blurring his mind, somewhat effected his responsibility level. His imagination was running wild, as he struggled to restrain his receding common sense. In a desperate attempted of taking control, he tried to practice a breathing exercise they recently learned: slowing all bodily functions in order to save oxygen and establish a meditative type of being. But all that went down the drain when April suddenly spoke into his neck.

"Raph" Her voice sounded hazy and sleepy, "Take me to the bedroom... please…"

Raphael's eyes widened so much, he was afraid they might fall out of their sockets. Oblivious, April encircled his neck with her arms, expecting to be picked up immediately. Biting his tongue inside his mouth in order not to lose his cool, he gently picked her up in his arms, forgetting all about Casey and the vodka, and stepped into the bedroom on quilted legs, where he lowered her into bed and was about to make turtle tracks, when he realized she wouldn't let go, pulling him into bed with her.

"Won't you stay with me?" – she questioned, keeping a surprisingly strong grab on his shell, "Please…"

"Sh… Sure…" was all he could manage, as he carefully placed himself beside her, his heart beating like a maniac. April sighed with content and smiled at him. He smiled back, his whole body a nervous wreck.

"But you'll have to take your mask and everything else off… " – she pointed at his belt, while getting under the covers, "that would be more fair if you want to get under here…"

And Raphael, not believing his own eyes, watched April take her robe off… he couldn't see anything since she was under the covers, but the simple suggestion and the mental image caused his head to spin in a much greater effect than the alcohol. He lay stiff like a log of wood, struggling to set his whole body into a restart mode.

She giggled.

"Let me help you with that" April's hand drifted towards his face to remove his bandana, while he hurriedly (unable to breath in the process) took off his belt and all the wrappings from his limbs.

"There! Much better!" – she exclaimed, picking up one side of the blanket and placing it on top of his torso.

The poor turtle shut his eyes, in a gesture of respect and at least some kind of awe at the sight of his female friend's bare skin picking out. April giggled again and, touching his face with her hand, lightly kissed his cheek: "You're such a gentleman!" She playfully caressed the rim of his chest plates, causing him to lose his breath again: "But it's okay to look, you know…"

Raphael opened his eyes, meeting April's gaze and her welcoming smile. He sheepishly smiled back unsure what the shell was happening.

"Did I make you uncomfortable?" – she required, "If you want to leave, I'll understand…"

"NO!"

The syllable was fired so fast and so determinately that it made them both burst out laughing. And after the mood was lightened, April pointed out in a more serious tone (in a manner not suitable for interpretation), meaning absolutely business: "I REALLY LIKE you, Raphael… and wanna try something, if you're up to it of course…"

Raphael's throat was suddenly so dry. He couldn't even move his jaw, as he swallowed hard and mutely nodded once.

"Perfect!" – said April, pulling so close to him that he could feel her breath on his face. Then smiling and looking straight into his eyes, she softly caught his lips with hers.