Mike had a strong sense of anticipation as he waited on the porch with Rebecca. It had been a little over a week since Caleb had first set foot at Lotus Salvus, and three days since he and Luke had returned to Asheville for a couple of scheduled meetings with investors. They weren't expecting the men to return until tomorrow, but everyone still had something to which they looked forward to for today.
The rest of the family left behind in New York had arrived in North Carolina via a 757 earlier that morning, and were on the Blue Ridge Parkway, heading for the house. Michelangelo was excited about seeing everyone, but Brandon most of all. The orange-masked turtle tried hard to relax and focus on the calm surroundings.
A moderate breeze was making the tree branches sway, as though the plants were taking part in a ritual dance to celebrate the bold colors that were coming forth. Mike only had his sweatshirt on, but he was comfortable. He glanced at Rebecca, smiling secretively in admiration. From what the docs could tell, she was probably about nine weeks along, and he was relieved she hadn't had any major issues before the pregnancy had been discovered.
Luke and Donny had set up the first stem cell treatment for Rebecca before the doctor had left, to head off the possibility of miscarriage before it reared its ugly head. Becky had been taking everything in stride without complaining, even though Mike knew she was in pain sometimes, and he'd yet to see her eat more than a couple bites at a time in the last two weeks.
The turtle exhaled slowly, picking up one of her hands in his own. "Are you feeling okay?"
She nodded, holding his gaze without flinching.
Beck isn't a good liar when she doesn't have to be, he reminded himself. She's gonna be all right. The docs and Don will take care of her, even if I can't.
"How are you?" she emphasized.
Mike shrugged, because he didn't know what to say. Even the trip he'd made upstairs to find Donatello today had been much more difficult than it should have been. It had ended with Donny's stern lecture to avoid using the stairs and take it easier.
How much easier can I take it? Shell, I know that they don't expect me to stay in bed all day. I'm not that far gone, and I refuse to surrender to that.
Mike became suddenly aware that Becky was staring at him, waiting for an answer.
"I'm all right," he said. "More tired than I want to be, but I'm excited to see everyone too. It feels like it's been longer than it really has, doesn't it?"
Rebecca nodded. "For sure. I can only imagine how happy Marc is going to be to see April. The separation can't have been easy."
Mike shook his head. "I'm glad she's staying down here now. It will be good for Brandon to heal in a place like this too."
Rebecca chuckled. "It's starting to feel more like a hospital than a home. Between you, Raph, me, and now Bran...we're going to keep everyone hopping, aren't we?"
Mike grinned. "Yep. It's a good thing there are so many girls around to feed us. With the exception of Kat, that is." He snickered.
Rebecca gave him a serious look. "She's really tried, Mike. I mean, Karina has even coached her."
"Aw, no one's good at everything. Kat has her own set of tail-kicking talents. Why does she need to know how to cook, when she can beat someone from here to Texas? Have you ever gotten to see her and Brandon go at it?"
Becky shook her head. "They fight each other too?"
"They spar, just not in front of us. Kat's afraid it'll ruin Bran's image or something, but he told me the truth once. She can totally wipe the floor with 'im. Not like every single match; he actually comes pretty close sometimes. But the big sis comes out on top."
"Hm," Becky said thoughtfully. "I wonder if that's how it would be with Olivia and our baby."
Mike's eye ridges rose. "No kid of mine is gonna constantly get beat down by his cousin. I don't care how much practice it takes," he said impishly.
"You don't strike me as being a slave driver, Mikey."
He smiled, but before he responded to her, he noticed a small cloud rising above the trees.
"What, Mike?"
"Dust. I think someone's coming." Instinct told Mike to get out of sight until he was certain it was friends, but he got a glimpse of the van as it passed through the trees, and recognized it from Tim's description of the rental car.
Rebecca waved madly from the porch, and turned to the door. "I'm going to tell everyone that they're here."
As she disappeared into the house, Mike waited at the top of the steps, despite his desire to launch off the porch and run to meet them. When the van pulled up, April hopped out before it had even come to a complete stop. The red-head ran across the grass and the turtle opened his arms to greet her properly.
April hugged Mike tightly, clinging to him longer than he'd expected. When she met his gaze, she had tears in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." she faltered.
"Ape, it's okay," he said quietly. "I'm still here. It's good to see you."
The woman nodded with a loud sniffle. "It's good to see you too."
"Go greet your husband. I'm sure he's dying to see you," Mike suggested, pointing to the front door.
April moved on into the house, and Mike noticed Tim and Victoria waiting at the bottom of the stairs.
"Hey, guys," he said warmly. "So you found the place. What do you think?"
"I think it's more beautiful than Luke described." Victoria offered him a genuine smile, and gave the turtle a hug.
Tim looked at the open door behind Mike. "I hear you've been making friends with some dogs," he cracked.
"Which liar told you that?" Mike asked innocently. "Nah, Molly and Noah are cool. They're pretty entertaining to have around. I'm glad you guys could make it."
He embraced the man, and before he could blink his brothers and Greg had piled outside on the porch to help bring things inside, calling greetings as they went. Mike turned to face Brandon, who'd been standing by quietly. The man was wearing an oddly shaped cast and a sling over his right shoulder, but he looked fairly normal otherwise.
"Hi, Bran." Mike took a step in his direction, and the man swiftly moved to close the gap between them.
Brandon wrapped his good arm around the turtle, and Mike did his best to hold on to him without jarring his injured side.
"How are you doing with this thing?" Mike indicated the sling.
"It's all right. There's pain, but it's not supposed to last more than a few weeks. I can probably get the cast off in about six, but I still have to avoid high impact activities for weeks after that."
"Yeah, you, me, and Raph get to sit on the bench together," Mike said wryly. "Why don't you c'mon in? This place is even better inside."
Brandon followed him into the house, stopping to admire the angles of the massive ceiling in the Great Room. "This place is amazing. It feels like a mirage, as if it can't actually be real."
"It's real enough, Bran." Mike laughed as Katherine and Karina rolled into greet their brother, and Reina squealed from Kat's hip.
"Aw, you didn't forget your Uncle Bran, huh?" Brandon smiled at the baby. "I swear she's bigger, Kat. Your kid is growing like a weed."
"She and Olivia have been having a ball together," Karina told him. "They're practically like sisters."
"Where is my other niece?" Bran asked.
"With the turtle you ain't noticed yet," Raphael called from a recliner.
The man did a half-spin to see the red-masked turtle, and shook his head sympathetically. "That's quite the contraption Marc set you up with, Raph," he remarked. "Are you picking up reception?"
"Come over here and I'll give you a reception," Raph threatened.
Mike grinned as he looked away from Brandon greeting his brother and Olivia, and focused briefly on Marc and April in the corner. The two humans were enjoying their own reunion. It wasn't until April let go of Marcus that Mike realized how emotional the woman still was.
Well...I guess it isn't easy on anybody. We've had a little bit of time for it to sink in, but all of them just got here.
When her green eyes flicked over to him he offered her another smile, and April faintly returned it. In the midst of the talking, laughing, and hauling going on around him, Mike felt like he was back in the middle of the greatest circus on Earth.
It just doesn't get more fun than this, he mused.
The orange-masked turtle was caught up in the chaos one second, only to be startled by a crash from the kitchen in the next. He spun and ran toward the next room without even giving it a second thought. Mike stopped when he realized there was glass on the floor, and his equilibrium was faltering dangerously.
"Mike, be careful," Calley warned him. "I dropped a mug when I was trying to hurry. Just a stupid mistake."
"It was an accident, Calley, you're allowed to have one of those," Mike replied, though he didn't try to move.
He locked his knees to give himself more stability, but then remembered that it was the wrong thing to do to keep from passing out. Calley was peering at him strangely, and he had no doubt she'd picked up on his inner struggle. Wordlessly the young woman snagged one of the chairs and brought it over to him.
"Sit down, Mike. You shouldn't have run like that," she chided gently. "Are you okay?"
"I will be," he said quickly. "It's not serious, sis."
Calley frowned at him, her forehead creasing with small wrinkles. "Don't move," she told him, and left the kitchen door swinging as she passed through.
Mike sighed as he looked down at the floor. This is crazy. I can't accept not being able to move. What am I supposed to do, get myself a wheelchair?
Before he could come up with a suitable answer for himself, Marc and April came into the room.
"Oh, that's not so bad." April observed the shattered mug. "I'll get this cleaned up right quick."
"What's going on, Mike?" Marc asked.
"I got dizzy is all," he replied. "Probably moved too fast."
The man nodded. "I would have to concur with that. How's your head feeling now?"
Michelangelo closed his eyes, but he still felt like the room was moving. Marcus crouched down near his level, and reached for his wrist.
"When you're not getting enough oxygen, it can affect your heart too, Mike. That's another reason you really have to be careful," Marcus told him.
The turtle nodded meekly, and shifted his weight onto his legs to stand up. Marcus stretched an arm around his back protectively, as if he'd be able to pick Mike up if he needed to. Mikey grinned at the mental image of the soft-spoken doctor trying to haul his shell around single-handedly.
"Can you take a couple small steps, Mike? Let's see how those work out."
The orange-masked turtle obediently shuffled forward, to prevent himself from getting off balance. "I've got to stop stealing the show," he muttered.
Marc's arm tightened around him. "When you need help, you need help, Mike. There's no sense in letting it get to you. We've all been in that position before."
"Some of us are here more often than others," Mike grumbled in return.
Marcus tried to stifle a laugh, but wasn't completely successful. "You're the ones who don't want to retire."