I went straight to the lair after school. April was having dinner tonight with her dad so I went alone. Leonardo messaged me to say that they were currently out checking something and would be home soon. I at least thought Splinter would be home but when I got there, no one was around it seemed. "Hello? Master Splinter?" Nothing. He must be meditating or something, I shrugged it off and went inside the common area.

I'll admit, it was a lot cleaner than when I first came here. It took me some time before they finally convinced me to come on down to the lair. You see, I had this debilitating fear of rats and hearing that their master was a human-sized rat…. Well, let's just say I ran literally screaming the first time I saw him. But as time passed and I visited more, I slowly got used to him; even the idea in being in an abandon underground railway station.

Walking over to the low table, I saw Raphael's comic books all scattered around. Heh, a small grin peered across my lips. Him and his comic books; if he wasn't out patrolling, skateboarding, or annoying me, he was either in his room or out here reading away. Would it kill him to read something substantial once and a while? My hand reached down to pick one up. But the moment my fingers touched the cover, my eyes suddenly glossed over. Then the most extraordinary thing happened. I felt my conscious slip away from me in less than a second. Without will or consent, a rapid mirage of images zoomed through my mind with a familiar voice speaking in the background. I don't remember shutting my eyes but for about five seconds, I lost all sight, drifting off into somewhere far, far away.

"I love you." Me and the four turtles sitting in the sub shop laughing together. "I love you." Raphael pushing me on a swing while Michelangelo swung beside me. "I love you." The turtles training with Splinter observing. "I can't stop loving you." The Shredder in his tower downtown looking out of a window. "I love you." A man with dark brown hair wearing a black eye mask standing on a roof. "I love you…..." The last image was of Raphael and me. We were much older than our current selves, standing side-by-side with Raphael's big, green hand holding mine. "I love you." We were standing there and looking at each other…

"You are so easy to love."

My vision returned as I blinked desperately. Immediately my whole body shot up and stumbled back a few steps, with my eyes continuing to blink like I had regained my lost sight after years. W-what the hell was that?! I brought my hand up to my head, which still felt light. I….. I remember seeing and hearing something but as soon as it appeared, it was gone into obscurity. I couldn't stop trembling; I knew something- something profound- had just happened to me, though I had no clue what it was. I couldn't remember anything….

"Baby?" My head instantly shot around to see a confused Splinter staring at me. He was in his usual robe and had his long wooden staff in his paws. "Are you alright?" After a few deep breaths, I came to recognize that I was still in the lair, though it felt like I had just left for a long time. "I'm in the lair," I heard myself say out loud. "I'm in the lair….." My eyes scrolled off into nowhere in particular.

Splinter came down in my direction. "Are you alright? You look frazzled, my child." "I….! I, uh…." I slowly found my eyes drift to my hands. "I don't know. I was just standing here and all of a sudden…." I know something happened to me, but what? I can't remember. Splinter's wide eyes were locked down onto me as he appeared to evaluate the situation. I saw his attention drift to Raphael's comic book for a second. "I see, you do not remember." "N-no," I shook my head. "But you're sure something happened?" "I… I think so….. but I can't remember anything…." I lifted my hand up to my head again. The large rat studied me for another second before solemnly nodding his head.

"Baby, look me straight in the eye," Splinter instructed out of nowhere; I obeyed. He stared into my eyes for a long moment, then nodded a second time. "I knew it; from the moment I met you, I could tell….. But I never thought your eyes would shine that brightly." "My eyes are shining?!" I asked, hurriedly getting out my phone and opening the camera. They looked perfectly normal to me after a quick check. "T-they look fine." "That is good; its better if you can't see it. It only means that your eyes have been "re-opened", as it were." "Re-opened? What are you talking about?"

The wise, old rat looked at me for another long second before chuckling lightly and shaking his head. "It is not for you to worry about. You will come to see in time but for now, it'll likely not affect you," he continued at the insistence of the expression on my face. "Do not fret, my dear," his paw patted my shoulder comfortingly. "I will explain it to you in time. For now, just enjoy yourself and focus on school." "Y-yes…." I gazed down, a little disappointed. With one last pat, Splinter brushed past me to head to the dojo. Before entering though, he paused to peer at me through the corner of his eye. "Baby?" I turned to face him. "Do not shut your eyes again." And with that, he shut the sliding door, leaving me standing there with a head full of questions.