Hello all! DarkUnderworld here. I have taken up the challenge to finish this fic for MarMarBinks and I wanted to thank Margui who pushed me to do it:)

So I hope everyone enjoys and hopefully I was able to capture the spirit and characters of the previous chapters.

And thank you to MarMar for allowing me to do this and for posting these chapters from her account so there won't be any story flow interuption.

Chapter 8: Actions

April wiped her mouth as a feeling of numbness washed over her. She was pregnant and the baby was Casey's. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to feel thankful that it was his and not Donatello's, or if she should feel more miserable because it wasn't Donatello's. Was there a secret wish in her heart that if the baby had been Donatello's that it would have given her an excuse to finally leave Casey? She wondered dully to herself.

"April..." Donatello began gently, but she just shook her head cutting him off. She couldn't listen to Don right now. The numbness had begun to fade and all she could feel was overwhelming misery and despair. The chains of guilt and remorse that had already bound her to Casey tightened with the information that the baby was his. In fact they tightened so much that they choked the breath from her body, suffocating her slowly, more and more with each passing moment.

She choked back a sob of anguish. She couldn't deal with any of this right now. "Don't tell him." She said to Don who looked at her with shocked eyes.

His shock turned to derision. "Casey is the father, he has a right to know." Don's voice had become sharp and filled with some other emotion that she was unable to decipher.

"I...I will..." She said swallowing down her despair as she realized that Don hated her. That was the other emotion rolling around in his eyes, hate. That she deserved this hatred did not go any way to assuaging the hopeless misery she felt at the moment, it only increased the feeling of suffocation that stole the breath from her lungs.

Don gave a curt nod and stood swiftly. He did not even give her a second glance as he walked to the door. "I'll tell him that you have the flu, but if you don't tell him, I will." He said as he opened the door and shut it firmly behind him.

April could hear mumbled voices and then Casey walked into the room. "Donny says you just have a flu, but you should take it easy and rest for a while." Casey said with concern as he sat down on the edge of their bed. April nodded as she tried to suppress the tears that threatened to fall.

Why was Casey being so nice to her? She wondered desperately to herself. Couldn't he see what a horrible, disloyal, and deceptive person she was? Couldn't he tell that she had been unfaithful to him, both in body and soul? This thought made her almost hate him for not being able to catch her deception. Did he not know her well enough to tell how miserable she was? But she knew her hatred was as unfounded as it was undeserved, the person she really hated was herself. She had betrayed Casey through her lies and infidelity and she had used Don, her best friend and the one she was actually in love with. And because she had stayed with Casey and said 'yes' to marrying him, had caused her friend intense pain. She deserved to have Don hate her, and she deserved to have Casey hate her too.

Donatello watched as the emotions rolled through April's emerald green eyes, the same eyes that made him forget sense and reason and would throw them both into the wind if she asked it.

"April..." He began because he knew that she was probably relieved that Don wasn't the father. Don knew that April would be able to marry Casey and not have to spare a second thought about Don now. This thought cut him to the quick and sent a shot of bitter anger through him.

"Don't tell him." She had begged, her eyes full of unshed tears.

These words momentarily shocked Don, but then his shock was overcome by disgust and anger that she dared to look upset. She was not allowed to be upset about having Casey's child. She had made it perfectly clear that their one night together had meant less than nothing to her. Don's anger still burned brightly which caused his next words to come out harsh and clipped. "Casey is the father; he has a right to know."

April stared at him numbly as if shocked by his words. "I...I will..." She promised. She looked as if she was about to crumble into a million pieces. He ignored her pain as he curtly nodded and stood. He walked to the door without even turning around because he couldn't even look at her any more.

"I'll tell him that you have the flu, but if you don't tell him, I will." Don warned, because Casey did have a right to know.

He opened the door and shut it with a firm click behind him. He encountered Casey who was pacing in front of the couch with worry. Casey turned concerned blue eyes towards Donatello and he took this moment to really observe the man who was with the woman Don loved. Don knew he should feel guilt ridden staring into the icy blue of Casey's eyes, but found he was able to meet the man's eyes levelly without a twinge of guilt. The remorse that Don now felt was that he had allowed himself to hope for even a moment that April might feel more for him than she obviously felt.

Don informed Casey that April had a flu and that she should get plenty of rest. Casey's face beamed with relief as he clapped Don on the shoulder happily and thanked him for rushing over and looking in on April for him.

Don blinked in shock as he realized that even though Don was himself in love with April; it was obvious that Casey was as well. It didn't matter that Don's heart was breaking into a thousand pieces day by day, because Casey's love for April was no less real than his own. Did he really want Casey to feel as miserable as he did? He asked himself. No. The answer surprised him. No one should have to suffer this feeling of heartbreak and yet at the same time he could admit to himself that there was a spiteful part of him that would not be upset if April broke Casey's heart, which just proved to Don that he was still painfully in love with the green eyed red-head, no matter how much he wished he wasn't.

Don left their apartment as fast as he could, but took his time returning to the lair. His anger had long since burned itself out and he was able to look at the events that had occurred in the apartment with a calm and logical perspective.

He felt his steps slow as he remembered April's face in stark and painful detail when he told her that the baby was Casey's. Now that he wasn't paying attention to his own shock and hurt he realized that there had been no relief in April's face, not even the tiniest bit. April may have been surprised at her pregnancy, but surely she should have been happy that the baby was Casey's, who was the man she was going to marry, and not Don's who was nothing but a regretful one night stand to her.

This thought began to spin around and around in his head as he felt his feet stop completely. He stood on the rooftop with the moon peeking ever so slowly out of the clouds that drifted lazily up in the sky overhead. Don walked to the edge of the building and sat, listening to the hum of humanity that swarmed beneath him as he replayed April's reaction over and over in his head. He then recalled when April and Casey were last at the lair and she had looked at him with turmoil in her eyes. Don pushed away his own feelings of hurt and heartbreak and replayed every time he had seen April since her engagement.

Don had always watched April with glasses tinged with the soft pink of the most delicate of roses. She was always perfect and beautiful no matter what, but Don realized that April had lost weight and the joy she always held in her beautiful, emerald green eyes had faded into murky pools filled with despair. What Don had assumed was the inevitable guilt and remorse of a regrettable mistake may in fact have been more than that. He felt his spirits lift slightly at the thought that she may be in fact regretting her decision to marry Casey.

He let out a puff of irritation at himself as he shook his head in self loathing. He severed the wings of the hope that had begun to fill his heart and stood, determined to put any thoughts of April and Casey from his mind. It wasn't as if Casey had forced April to accept his proposal. If she hadn't wanted to marry Casey all she had to say was 'no'.

He began to walk and then run back to the lair, as if by running he could somehow escape April's anguished face that refused to be banished from his mind.

April ignored the fact that she was pregnant with Casey's child for the next several weeks. She hadn't worked up the nerve to tell him and made sure to hide any morning sickness by blaming it on the lingering flu. She knew that she could not keep her pregnancy a secret forever, knowing that even Casey would begin to suspect something eventually, but had been unable to open her mouth and tell him. She was unsure how Casey would react. She knew that the information that he was going to be a father would no doubt surprise him, but having to watch his face light up in joy while her heart was plunged in gloomy turmoil was a prospect she could not bear at the moment. The fact that each day had brought her no closer to being able to tell Casey of this development only confirmed in April's heart that she was the most hateful person in the world.

She avoided Casey when she could and refused to go to the lair with him when he decided to visit. She couldn't face Donatello anymore. Knowing that she had not only lost her friendship with him, but had turned that friendship into hatred ripped her already bleeding heart to shreds with devastation. April was surprised that that vital organ was still able to continue to beat with the amount of misery, despair and guilt that it was filled with.

She stared despondently at her hands. Casey was out with friends again and she was thankful from the respite from his ever loving gaze. She clenched her hands together and closed her eyes before standing and walking into her bedroom. She knelt down on the floor and pulled out the suitcase that had been hidden beneath the bed and heaved the already half full piece of luggage onto the bed.

She opened the lip with a flop and looked at her belongings. She walked over to her drawers determined to do more than just fill the bag with a few items, change her mind and place it beneath the bed again. That she had been unable to unpack the clothing when she changed her mind was painfully telling. Also telling was her inability to actually fill the suitcase and walk out the door with it. Which was ridiculous because it was her apartment, though Casey was planning on 'officially' moving in with her at the end of the month since he never went back to his apartment anymore anyways. Still, she knew that she shouldn't have to leave it, but the overwhelming need to get as far away from Casey and Donatello as possible burned hotly through her.

Her shoulders slumped and she closed the suitcase pulling it off the bed and jamming it under the bed again. She sat down on the edge of the bed and contemplated her options. She seemed to be unable to separate all of the emotions that flowed through her like an uncompromising tsunami bent on destruction.

She had no one to help her untangle her turbulent thoughts and emotions. She used to, until she had betrayed Don, her best friend. She couldn't even talk to the rest of the guys or Master Splinter because it involved Don participating in an active act of betrayal against Casey, who was their friend as well.

She dashed the tears from her eyes as she looked at the far wall with a hopelessness that bordered on despair. She lightly ran her hand across her belly and realized that this was not just about her anymore. There was a life growing inside of her that she was responsible for. And Don was right, Casey did have a right to know. That her life was going to be forever bound to the man whose baby she held in her womb was unavoidable, but it wasn't the child's fault that she had fallen in love with a man who was not a man at all, but a mutant turtle whose kind, intelligent, chestnut brown eyes had lit up every time she had entered a room; and whose touch had sent shivers of desire through her that would now remain forever unsatisfied. She had lost Donatello's friendship forever, and this pained her sending unstoppable waves of despair rolling through her, but she accepted that as her due. The fact that she was about to injure a good man who had done nothing to her but love her was even more painful; because Casey did not deserve to be hurt, especially by the likes of her. But that he was going to feel hurt and betrayed was inevitable, because she had decided that she couldn't live the lie she was living anymore.

April took a deep breath as a spark of determination lit her from within. She was going to tell Casey the truth, about everything. The possibility that Casey may walk out on her was expected and even desired, but knowing he may not want anything to do with their child was devastating, but at least he would have the choice. She owed him that much.

She knew that either way she was going to leave. If Casey wanted to be a part of their child's life that was fine, but April had to get away from New York and start fresh. She was going to put all of her regrets and everything behind her, and hope that someday, far, far in the future, she would be able to be happy again.

She stood up quickly. She didn't want to wait for Casey to return to her apartment. She wanted to talk with him now. The need was so strong that she almost ran from the apartment in her pajamas. She slowed herself enough to quickly change before bolting through the door and down four flights of stairs reaching the heat drenched air of the street, panting with exertion.

She took a deep breath and looked down the street. Casey was going to hang out at a local sports bar to watch the big game with some of his buddies. She wasn't sure what the 'big game' was. It could have been football or golf for all she knew, or cared. It was then she wondered why she could not have seen how very different and incompatible her and Casey were before this moment? It was like a bolt of lightning to her senses as she realized that the friendship she had always felt for Donatello had always been so much more than that. She wondered if it was because of his age when he had met her, since he had been 15 and her 20, or if it had been because he wasn't human and so had not thought that there would ever be the possibility of them having a relationship; that had blinded her to her feelings for him.

She started to run down the street desperate to end things with Casey and rid herself of her burden of guilt and remorse. She ran past the entrance to an alley where the distinctive sounds of a fight filtered through to her ears. April stopped as goose bumps of fear prickled their way across her arms as indecision rode over her. She darted down the darkened alley because she knew that whoever was being attacked was probably in need of some help.

She reached the end of the alley and rounded the corner just as Casey, in his white hockey mask, golf bag slung over his back, smashed a street thug over the head with a golf club. April stared in opened mouthed shock as Raphael hit another thug with his fist causing the thug to crumple to the ground like a delicate house of cards. Casey chuckled and gave Raph a high five, pleased with their night's work.

April stared at Casey in shock as she realized that his decision to give up the life of a vigilante for her had been nothing but a lie. This realization somehow did not surprise her as much as she thought it would. What surprised her the most was the wave of hot dark betrayal that rose up within her and choked her. The thought that she had spent even a moment feeling guilty over sleeping with Donatello and accepting Casey's proposal of marriage made her feel like a fool. The fact that Casey had lied did not forgive her actions, and she was aware of this fact, but at the moment, she didn't care.

She must have made some noise because both Casey and Raph turned towards her, ready for another fight, but both freezing in shock when they saw that it was her. Casey and Raph lowered their respective weapons as April took a step back.

"April, it's not what it looks like." Casey protested as he took a step towards her. She shook her head, not wanting to hear his excuses.

"I can't believe that I actually believed that you were going to change, that you were going to choose me over bashing in heads. That I spent even one moment feeling guilty..." She shook her head. She was tempted to rip the engagement ring from her finger, throw it in his face, and tell him that they were over. It was the perfect excuse. Casey would never have to know that she had cheated on him with Donatello. She wouldn't have to destroy Casey's relationship with Don over the truth, or Raph's relationship with Don either. The only problem would be that April and Don would always know the truth, and she was unsure if she could live with that kind of guilt, especially if Casey took an active role in their child's life.

She heard Raph protest his friend's innocence as she turned.

"Okay April it is but...just lemme explain!" Casey yelled at her as she ran.

She needed to get out of the alley as fast as she could, go home and bury her head in her pillow until she could think straight again. Hopefully Casey would leave her alone until she could talk to him in a calm and collected manner, because if she talked to him now she knew she may say something she would regret later.

She could hear Casey running behind her, trying to catch up. She ran faster, the tears blinding her headlong flight, heedless of where she was going or what was going on around.

Time slowed.

April turned her head and looked at into the blinding headlights of the car that approached her at a startling speed. That she stopped to stare uncomprehendingly as the car approached was all on her. She heard screaming. It may have been her own voice, it may have been someone else screaming her name, April wasn't sure, but all noise was abruptly silenced as her body was hit by the unforgiving metal of the oncoming truck. She hit the pavement and rolled as pain exploded throughout her body in a red hot wave of agony.

She couldn't move. Her sight was beginning to darken around the edges as she struggled to breathe but couldn't. The thought that she would now never have to confront Casey slowly drifted through her head, but somehow death seemed too easy and cowardly.

I am evil I know, but I enjoy leaving chapters on cliffhangers;) Thoughts and opinions are always welcome. One more chapter after this.