Chapter 5

"The fall"

The motorcycle popped up into an accidental wheelie the first time Arayah gunned it across a street to another ally.

Startled, Raph threw his weight forward causing the front end of the bike to hit the ground hard. The sudden shift in weight caused the bike to fish tail.

Both Raph and Arayah were experienced bikers. So, of course, they reacted to the situation differently. Arayah adjusted her seat on the bike and punched the gas, expecting the motorcycle's desire to be upright, thanks to physics plus speed, to correct the fishtail. Raph reached forward and clasped her hand and the break while bringing his feet out to keep the bike from falling. They ended up with the motorcycle stopping hard and the back tire spinning out till Arayah let go of the throttle to elbow Raphael.

"Maybe you should let me drive." Raphael suggested.

Arayah shot him an irritated look through her thick eyelashes. "How about you keep your hands off my handle bars."

Her pursed lips and scowl left him contemplating her taste again, which only fed the scowl he shot back at her. "Then drive better."

"Want to get off?" She shot back. She was boss in every aspect of her life, and Arayah wasn't about to take shit from a giant talking turtle.

No, he definitely did not want to get off. He was thoroughly enjoying her warmth against him and the curve of her waist in his hands, despite his belief that flirting with desire was stupid. He motioned to the ally ahead. "Well, come one. Kick it already."

And kick it she did. This time they recovered from the wheelie better. The bike roared through the allies and dark under ways of the city. They tore through sewer tunnels and empty cement canals, pushing the Duu Motorcycle as hard as they dared with two riders.

Arayah brought the bike to stop behind a bar. Live music spilled out into the ally way. By the sound, it was some local rock band. She looked back at the turtle on the back of the bike. "Want to hang and listen?"

Raph looked at the bar's back door. "I can't go in there. Turtle, remember?"

Arayah pointed up. "We'll listen from the roof."

Duh, Raph mentally kicked himself. "Ya sure.'

On the way to the roof Raphael ninjaed his way to the edge of the patio, reached over and traded a five dollar bill for a couple of beers off a passing waitress' tray. It had been an unnecessary risk. But the smile Arayah treated him to, made the risk worth it.

She gladly accepted the beer and pressed it to her lips taking a long slow draw of the hoppy liquid. She mmmm'ed her approval. And Raph couldn't help feeling a decent amount of pride for appeasing her. Then he couldn't help feeling a little ridiculous for feeling so much pride over something seemingly so small.

They didn't talk while on the roof. They sat there, sipped on their beer, and listened to the music. For a while they sat next to each other and just enjoyed existing. Which was something they both often forgot to do, so easy was it to get caught up in all the trouble that went with being. It was a nice change of pace.

When the late night turned into early morning, and Arayah slipped into sleep, her head came to rest on Raph's arm. He looked down at her. His first thought was to shake her awake. But when he touched her shoulder and she scooted into his warmth, he changed his mind.

He supported her head with one hand as he moved his other arm around her and rested his hand on her hip. Then gently he brought her head to lie on his chest.

In the moments that followed he began to understand what it was his brothers kept trying for. A feeling he was stealing from a woman he barely knew.

Dawn came all too soon.

Despite Raphael being disappointed in his own weakness for the woman and the mental beating he gave himself during the hurried run home, many such nights followed.

At first Raphael gave in to the idea that the feelings he would get being around her were something he could just get out of his system. He was quickly finding, however, that the more time spent and each stolen moment or touch only caused him to crave more. He was skipping out on Casey and his brothers more and more. Regards for his own safety were being ignored. Black helicopters and men in black uniforms or suits patrolled the allies most nights making the quest to get to Arayah that much more interesting. His family's patience in his frequent disappearances was also quickly running out. Something was bound to give eventually. But he didn't care as he milked every second of the night he could in an attempt to satisfy his addiction to her, which meant he had to work harder to cover his bulky form and run faster to get home before the city was fully illuminated. The sun becoming an undefeatable and hated enemy.

All the while, Arayah was oblivious to the growing feelings of her friend. She did enjoy his company however and didn't mind his occupying what little free time she had. Running the clinic made it hard to have much of a social life outside the office. Sure there was the occasional handsome jackass from the bar or club to satisfy her more carnal needs but the hours Raph kept were perfect for meeting her social needs. Even when they didn't agree they seemed to be able to handle each other's stubborn temperament without scathing. The lack of attraction, on her part, gave the relationship an easy pressure free feel, making him a most excellent companion. So, it seemed to be a winning arrangement all around, as far as Arayah was concerned. So the nights flew by with beer, video games, and many many jaunts or motorcycle rides around the city, peppered with fights against random ruffians.

Raph now sat on a stool at her kitchen counter, shirtless as usual but wearing a pair jeans to cover what his jacket couldn't, listening to her talking about a particularly difficult patient and its owner that she had dealt with at work. The hum of helicopters buzzed distractingly over the city and Raphael knew full well he should not have ventured out of the sewers. He shouldn't have even left the layer.

"That damn dog bit me!" she exclaimed showing the small mark on her arm.

Raph chuckled.

"It's not funny." She said smacking his shoulder. She sat a plate of nachos on the counter and walked around him to her own stool.

"The way you were going off about it I thought it was big dog or something." He grinned before popping a cheesy, salsa covered chip into his mouth.

Arayah grinned as she rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Have you ever been bit by a dog? Even the little ones, fucking, hurt."

Raph crunched on another chip and as he chewed he pulled up his pant leg revealing a set of scars left by a mouth full of teeth. "Rottweiler. Don't remember why the hell we had gone into the purple dragon's hide out but that bitch of a dog sank her teeth in and was refusing to let go."

Arayah inspected the scars wide eyed. "How did you get away?" She rather enjoyed listening to his battle stories. Most of them were sparked by squabbles they would venture into in the alley ways when cruising around on their motorcycles.

"Stabbed it in the head with my sai." Raph stated nonchalantly then reached for another chip. "Still had to pry its teeth out of my leg though."

Arayah sat on a stool next to the turtle and inspected her own dog bite. "Ya I guess my story isn't as good."

They both looked up as another helicopter flew low enough to vibrate the walls with its noise.

"Want to go for a ride?" Arayah asked. "These helicopters are starting to drive me nuts."

"Umm…" If coming up was a bad idea so was going for a ride on the bikes… he had left his at home anyway because Don had been working in the 'garage', which was just the part of the layer where they parked the vehicles they had accumulated. "I walked."

"Then we'll take the car. Come on." Arayah flashed that smile he couldn't resist and jumped up to grab her jacket.

"I thought you just had the Duu." Raph commented as he grabbed the pile of stuff he had to have to get home without being recognized as a turtle.

"I just got it yesterday." She said excitedly as she climbed out the window. She leaned against the rail as Raph climbed out after her. "You are going to love it."

Carefully avoiding the helicopter lights as another flew by the two made their way to the underground garage of the building, where Arayah led Raph to a covered vehicle that was parked next to her motorcycle.

"Stand back and watch the reveal." Arayah instructed as she grabbed the corners of the tarp. "I'm kinda proud of this."

"I can see that." Raph grinned, reveling in the excitement that made Arayah all that more beautiful to him.

With a quick twist of her body Arayah whipped back the tarp revealing a Dodge charger hellcat.

Raph couldn't believe his eyes. The machine was glorious. It was Gray with black racing stripes, black leather interior and it had all the amenities.

"wha..how.. they aren't even available yet!" He exclaimed as he ran a hand over its shinny finish.

"I know a guy that owed me from a while back. So, I called in a favor. I am in debt up to my eyeballs but this baby is so worth it. It has a supercharged HEMI V8 hellcat engine, 707 horse power, it can go a quarter mile in ten point eight seconds, tops out at about 199 miles per hour, and I know you want to see how she handles." Araya smiled devilishly.

"Oh, hell ya." Raph growled out his excitement.

Arayah tossed him the keys. "Show me what you got."

Even with the seat pushed all way back it was still a tight fit due to his shell, but Raph didn't care. He smiled ear to ear as he caressed the steering wheel then reached down and turned the key and listened to the engine roar to life. "Ooh ya."

Arayah couldn't help but laugh out loud at his obvious glee.

Raphael shifted the muscle car into reverse, made sure all was clear, and punched the gas whipping it out of the parking spot. He then threw it in to gear and burned out of the parking garage like 007 escaping some horrific explosion.

Trusting in her friend Arayah sat back and enjoyed the ride, which was much like enjoying a roller-coaster.

At first he was worried about gaining the attention of the helicopters that were watching the crevasses of the city with their spot lights. But, once it was apparent that a speeding sports car was the least of their concern, Raphael tore up every possible off beaten path of Manhattan. He drifted around every possible corner and pushed the car about as hard as he could only slowing down for any hills that he might catch air on, simply because he didn't want to damage the machine that was almost as beautiful as the woman that was enjoying the rush of the speed and torque, beside him.

Maybe it was the adrenalin, or the feeling of pure freedom, maybe it was her laughter, and squeals of excitement when she felt the pull of the turn, maybe it was a mixture of all of it. He really couldn't be sure all he knew is his head and heart were floating into some abstract oblivion and suddenly he needed to breath. So he whipped the car through a series of back roads and without warning stopped.

Arayah would have flown forward if not for the seat belt that held her firmly to the seat. She shot Raph an annoyed look. "Ow. Glad to know the breaks work."

Raph ignored her surly expression as he turned to her. "Want to see something cool? I mean something really cool."

His breathless excitement and wild eyed look peaked her curiosity. "Ya ok."

Leaving his jacket and what not behind Raph climbed out of the car. Smiling in anticipation Arayah followed. Her smile faded however when she caught up to Raph. He was looking up at the Woolworth building, which was quite lovely in its architecture, something similar to a cathedral. It hadn't been what she was expecting however.

"The Woolworth building?" She asked. "It pretty cool inside but I…"

"I've never been inside." Raph stated as he pulled some shuko spikes out of his belt. "Climb on my back."

Arayah looked at him as if he had gone mad. "What?"

"Climb on to my back." Raphael repeated. "And close your eyes."

"Why do you want me to…"

"Don't you trust me?" He smiled his slack jawed smile as he tilted his head just so.

Arayah could almost consider him adorable in that moment. "Ok, but don't do anything crazy."

"Promise." He said as he crouched down so she could climb on.

Once on his back and gripping his shell she hooked her feet in his belt and closed her eyes dutifully.

Using the shuko spikes for grip Raphael began the long climb up the side of the building. It was a climb he had made many times before and his rout was memorized. It was a favorite place, of his, to hide out when life below ground had his temper raging or he just needed some quiet.

The higher they got the more the wind whipped about them. Uncertain of their whereabouts Arayah clung tighter to Raphael. Her arms moving from holding on to his shell to wrapping tightly about his shoulders till he reached the top spire. Then with one hand he held tight to the lighting rod and with the other he took a firm hold of her arm and brought her around to squat between his knees facing away from him.

"Are your eyes still closed?" His deep voice tickling her ear as he moved so his chin almost rested on her shoulder.

"Yes." Arayah answered a bit apprehensively.

He made sure his arm was wrapped firmly around her waist in case she lost her footing, then instructed softly, "Open them."

When she did she was looking down. Immediately fear took over. Her hands shot out looking for something solid finding and gripping with all her might the out sides of Raph's muscled thighs. "Holy shit! This is fucking high Raph! Why the hell did you bring me up here?"

Raph chuckled at the string of unladylike cuss words, then knowing there was no way she was going to lose the grip she had on his thighs, reached up and pushed on her chin till she gasped at the reason he had brought her here.

"Oh, god." She whispered at the sight of the city strewn out before her. It looked as if the entire sky had fallen, and a billion stars lay at their feet. The many helicopters like slow moving satellites lost amidst the never ending of space.

Arayah had never seen anything like it. In awe of the view slowly her grip on Raphael loosened and his arm around her tightened.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Raph whispered against her cheek.

"Raph, it's amazing." Arayah turned her head to look at him as she spoke, her lips just brushing the side of his mouth.

It was that accidental breath of a touch that broke down the damn of desires and fight against emotions that Raphael had been holding back, not just since he had met her, but since he had first longed for the closeness of a companion, to feel warm soft skin against his own, to taste the sweetness of another. Did he love her? He wasn't sure that was something he even knew how to do. But, god, he wanted to taste her. Just lose himself for a moment in her luscious splendor.

Perhaps it was the tenderness in his touch or perhaps the passion in his kiss that coaxed her breathless compliance. Either way his mouth brushed over hers gently at first, just tasting. And when she did not turn away, he kissed her again and again. His hunger for her growing with each pass of their lips, his tongue dancing with hers till her head spun and the world floated away, lost in the fragile and perfect moment, till the precariousness of their perch brought them floating back down to earth in their attempt to get closer to one another.