My Best Friend

Author Dark Closure

Chapter 4

"There's something wrong with Raph," I could hear my older brother talking with the rest of them. When we had gotten home Splinter was gone, he had left a note simply saying that he was goin' to visit a friend of his. I know they were at a loss because they all exchanged looks before zeroing down on me. Casey offered to take me out, get me to talk, but I refused to leave. I had to stay close to Mikey, keep him close, keep him safe. After the house... after hearing his fists pouding on the door, padding over on the wall as I was pulled to the window... his screams of desperation... I couldn't leave him.

The mirror in the bathroom reflected little to no light that was giving out over head. I had been standing over the sink for a good ten minutes, my bandana resting around my neck as I watched my own eyes. Somethin' was wrong. I could tell but it was hard to determin what it was. Somethin' was different about myself, it was makin' me see Mikey in a whole new way. He had always been my baby brother, the one that I would smack up side the head for bein' careless or shootin' off his big mouth at the worst possible time. But now, now I got angry with him more. I couldn't stand the thought of him being close to anyone. I wanted to isolate the prankster so it was only him and me. Keep him away from everything, make sure nothing could get him, touch him. I was bordering obsessive. I had a hard time swallowing the fact that his seat was next to Donnie's at the kitchen table when April made us eat some dinner. I had a worse time keeping my cool when Leo reached over and put his hand on my shoulder when our younger brothers were doin' the dishes. The way he looked at me, his golden brown eyes trying to search me for any sort of clue about what has kept me clamed up, kept me on edge, and kept me so close to the brother he believed me to be attacking only a few short hours ago. I wanted to lash out, I wanted to tell him everything, I wanted to just grab Mikey and lock ourselves away so that the shadows and boogiemen couldn't have a chance, so that I would keep what little sanity was left in my instincts. But all I did was give a half hearted shrug, trying to get his hand off of me. Then I excused myself and went to the bathroom where I've been staring at myself.

What was wrong with me?

"Mikey, is there... anything you can tell us?"

Leave it to Don to sound like a housewife worried about her son. Then again, Donnie was always the most gentle, he was always... kind and a source of warmth for all of the family. Though I couldn't admit it, there have been times when my mind had been so plagued by horrors of the world and all I wanted to do was hold my brother close and partake of that comfort that he offers all the time. I never did, because I have to be the strong one, I have to be the one that doesn't need help, the one that even Leo can use for a pillar of strength when the fearless leader needs a break. The piller never gets a break though, it only crumbles away slowly.

"He... he uh..." Mikey sounded like a small child that was about to get into trouble.

"It's okay, Mikey, you can tell us." I looked over my shoulder out of the bathroom entrance way, I could see Mikey sittin' on the couch with Donnie petting his head. My eyes narrowed, I didn't like that. I don't know why but I really didn't like that.

"Well..." our orange clad baby brother shifted around lookin' from Donnie to Leo and back again a few times before lettin' out a long sigh. "I didn't want to go in, it's probably my fault for letting him go by himself."

No it wasn't, it wasn't your fault.

"I kind of freaked out on him and he tried to calm me down, but he said there was this little girl that needed to find her parents but there was no one there," his breath was gettin' short and labored. Eyes darting around as he continued, "He said he'd be right back, but the door shut... the door shut and... and..."

"That's enough," I said coming out of the bathroom pullin' my bandana back up over my eyes. Wearing my mask all the time, when it's off I feel... exposed.

"Raphael, we need to know what happened," Leo was looking at me pleadingly when I pushed past him, our shoulders bumpin' when I gave him a look that told him to back off.

"So you pressure him into it?" I reach down and grabbed Mikey by his upper arm, hullin' him up to his feet. "Yeah that's real great. You know somethin' Leo, I thought better of you. If he didn't want to talk about it before you should have backed off until he was ready."

"But Donnie-" Mikey looked at me.

"Donnie was doin' just as much damage as Leo," I snapped pullin' Mikey closer to me so our sides were touchin' making a physical statement that I was placing protective claim on him. I didn't want him hurt, physically or emotionally. He shouldn't be, he was my baby brother... mine.

"We only asked for a little bit to work off of. Raph you've been..." Donnie paused when he was half way off of the couch, his eyes widdening, "Leo get a towel!"

"Get a wha-?" Leo stopped in mid-word when he looked at me, his eyes becoming large as well. He then ran off into the room I had just left. Sounds of things fallin' echoed and I just blinked. What was goin' on here? I thought we were in the middle of an argument. Where did he think he was goin'? I looked over to Donnie who had scrambled off, retreaving a first aid kit. What where they up to? That's when I heard it, a soft sound. It was gentle and bearly audiable. I heard it again. Looking down there were a few splatter points where droplets of red had splayed across the hard floor.

"Shell Raphie," Donnie was diggin' out bandages when Leo came back with a towel. The towel was pressed hard against the large cut that was on the side of my bicep. I was confused, when did I get a cut? "I knew you were upset but..."

Leo moved the towel just long enough to get a look at the cut. It was long, thick, and deep, almost perfect enough to have been caused by my sai. But my sai had more perssition than that, it wasn't hesitent in my hands, it wouldn't have made the jut to the side like that. "Raphael," Leo's voice was hard, hard and... dangerous. His eyes met mine in a cold stare, "Did you do this?"

No way, they actually thought I'd do somethin' like this? "What do you think?" I let Mikey go with my other hand allowing him to go over to Donnie and find some ointment. Leo just kept that hard gaze, it was starting to become hateful, hateful towards me, maybe, hateful by the thought that I had done this deffienately, "Leo... guys... I... I didn't do this, honest," I looked to each and everyone of them. They seemed doubtful, "Guys, I didn't, you gotta believe me."

"No one else was in there with you Raph," Donnie sounded causious. "Casey and April went home half an hour ago after you left the table."

"Half an hour? But I was only in there for ten minutes. Mikey, I was in there for ten minutes right?

He shook his head, "Sorry... but we all thought you were taking a shower because you were gone for so long."

I put a hand on my head. How was this happening? I usually was so good with tellin' the time. How could I have lost twenty minutes? How did I get the cut? What was goin' on?

To Be Continued...