Oh lord, it's another surprise chapter. I saw a post on tumblr about the romance trope that two people are basically in a relationship with everything but physically and they both think the other is just being friendly and they can't possibly feel the same and oops that's these two absolute buffoons.
Dana felt her shoulder jostle from within the fog of sleep; she hadn't remembered falling asleep.
Peaking her eyes open, she was relieved that the dim fairy lights of the main room had replaced the harsh led overheads that often hurt her eyes late at night. Allowing her eyes to completely open, albeit still groggy and filled with that familiar fuzzy film obstructing her view, she followed the line of the large green hand on her shoulder up to the familiar bright green eyes that seemed to have a permanent residence in her dreams. Raphael's mouth was screwed tightly in a pout, scanning the young woman's face for any sign of alertness.
"Short stack, you got anywhere to be in the morning?" Dana gave a grunted "uh-uh" as she stretched from her curled position in the couch; her spine groaned in protest from discomfort and a very unsupportive chair arm. She was going to have to start getting on Donnie's case about trying to find a replacement for the dingy pile of blankets and cardboard they'd passed off as seating.
"How long was I out? Shit, I hope Mikey's not too upset, I really didn't mean to pass out on movie night." Raph let his smile creep onto his face, her care with his baby brother always made him feel warmed with affection.
"Nah, he fell asleep about the same time, I just sent him to bed. Come on, you're staying here tonight." The blonde followed him wordlessly through the darkened hallways of the sleeping area and through the door to the familiar warm lights of his room. She sat gingerly on the edge of the massive bed, watching the big barra stalk over to his dresser and rummage through a few drawers before tossing a shirt in her direction. It was large, clearly well worn from the fading of color and thinning at the armpits, but far too small for the turtle she knew now; she assumed it must be something left over from when he was younger. Dana smiled, the realization that her favorite sewer dweller had a soft spot for sentiment and nostalgia always managed to set her stomach fluttering. The sound of shuffling feet brought her attention back to the present and the subject of her adoration.
"I think we've got a spare toothbrush in the bathroom cabinet, but I'll come check cause it's kind of a mess in there." Raphael had never been one to get embarrassed by the fact personal organization was very limited in the shared areas, but it was still fairly new to allow a girl into the more intimate parts of their home. Dana didn't seem to pay much mind, shifting to stand and follow him to the bathroom like a good house guest.
She always found herself fascinated with how much work in repurposing space the boys had put in; the bathroom area was clearly salvaged from the old stall system of the subway, but a little handy work from Donnie (Raph and Leo were allowed to hammer things in place, she recalls being told explicitly that Mikey wasn't allowed in construction, but he was crucial in organizing the main spaces, so he never complained much), and they'd shifted in extra large stalls for both showers and toilets, and a very long slab of granite holding 2 large sinks. Raphael shifted piles around within the small utility closet until emerging with a plastic wrapped toothbrush, likely snagged from a local dentist's dumpster. Moving back into her space, he handed her the toothbrush, eyes meeting in the dim lights as their fingers brushed. Bleary eyed and feeling the pull of sleep at the edge of her consciousness, Dana smiled lightly, giving an extra pass of her fingers over scaled knuckles and allowing the pebbled skin to catch lightly against her finger tips. He responded with a gentle huff of air from his nose, before wordlessly leaving the bathroom.
Dana made quick work of brushing her teeth and changing, smiling down at the vision of the faded red cotton ending just above her knees; affection blooming warmth up into her cheeks. Grabbing her discarded clothes in a haphazard pile, leading to several instances of picking up a dropped sock while trudging back to her destination, she entered the familiar room to find …. No one. She observed the empty bed quizzically, finding a relatively unused corner to dump all her belongings in a pile until the morning, and set about finding her missing host. Dana stepped out into the hall, toes flexing on the old tile; the cool surface stinging her bare skin with a nip of winter still hanging tightly even in the safe haven of the sewers. Tip-toeing up so as not to disturb any other sleeping turtles in the vicinity, she found him upon entering the main quarters, stretched across the makeshift couch with a pillow and what looked to be one of their older blankets; filled with holes and frayed edges. Huffing, she strode through the open area, allowing her feet to hit the floor with a small 'slap' as she approached. Rounding to the side housing his head, choosing to avoid the mile of feet and legs hanging off the other arm, she angled her head over his. Raph had clearly heard her approaching (he once told her that her little feet on their floors sounded like little penguin flippers, rude) but refused to open his eyes.
"What are you doing?" One shockingly green eye popped open, peering up at the blonde bun hanging dangerously close to his mouth before scanning the annoyed look she was giving him and the soft sway of cotton engulfing her.
"… Sleepin', something you should already be doing." He watched two light brows sink down in frustration, her lips turning downward into an obvious pout.
"Okay, but it's literally freezing out here and your bed is huge. And definitely more comfortable than this monstrosity."
"Well, I'm being a good host."
"Well I don't want you to."
"Okay, but it would be rude to just sleep in a bed with you."
"Okay, but we've literally done that before." Raph pushed himself to a seated position, shooting a deep frown in his friend's direction.
"You told me we weren't ever supposed to talk about that again because, and I quote, 'that was so mortifying and I literally would rather die than ever discuss the details of that evening.'" She rolled her eyes, arms coming up to cross under her chest and causing him to redouble his focus back to her face, the faint outline of pebbled nipples, taut from the cold, briefly sending his mind reeling. Did she have to feel so comfortable around him that so many distracting instances could just find themselves nestled in the recesses of his brain? Of course, she was one of his best friends, it would be stupid for her not to feel comfortable and safe and oh, if she only knew the thoughts that plagued him long after the rest of New York quieted for a fitful rest. Her approach and subsequent reach for his closest hand brought him back to his current reality.
"Well, it's my horrible tale, so I can bring it up whenever it benefits me. Also, I'm not drunk and sending my entire friend group into a manic tizzy to find me, so this definitely isn't going to embarrass me and haunt my mind. Come on, big red, if I'm cold you must be freezing." And with a softening of her eyes and the gentle smile he swear she knew was his kryptonite, he fell to putty in her hands, allowing her to grip a hand and drag him to the recesses of the sleeping quarters.
They stood just inside the room awkwardly, each trying to calculate the best way to have them both rest comfortably on his massive bed. Sure, it was big, but being that he was 6 and a half feet tall and had a shell bigger than an industrial tire, he took quite a bit of space when he was situated for a night. A small poke caught his attention, perfectly situated in the space just where his shell gave way for a sliver of softer flesh beneath; how she always managed to stab her finger there was beyond him.
"Knock it off, what?" She disregarded his gruff response.
"How do you usually sleep? Just get comfy and then I'll slide in; it's not like I take up a lot of room."
"Yeah, well I do, and since I usually sleep on my stomach you won't have much room between the two of us." She scoffed at that, stepping forward and plopping ass first on the edge of the mattress.
"Oh no, I might cuddle my bestie, how terrible. Do I look like I'm bothered? Hurry up and get in here or I'm just gonna sleep however I want and you can work around me." With a brief roll of his eyes, the large terrapin slid quickly up to the bed, Dana standing to allow him to get in as he usually would. After sliding under the blankets, he faced his head to the back wall, a little self conscious at the situation. Sure, when she was drunk he'd been a little embarrassed, but he hadn't had much time to think about it when comforting her in such a vulnerable state. Now, he felt exposed; this was a vulnerable space for him, to let her in to his safe space consciously, and with him. He felt her weight dip the bed to the side of him, skin and cloth brushing lightly against the edge of his shell.
"You're a brat, Y'know that?" He heard the smirk in her response, feeling her shift around in an effort to find the best angle.
"But I'm your brat." The silence fell thickly, the phrasing coming without much thought and leaving the young woman quickly burning in embarrassment.
"… that's what she said." Mercifully clearing the air, he could feel the immediate relax of her muscles. A few minutes of shifting, Dana struggling to find a comfy place, he felt a warmth slide in just under the lip of his shell, a gentle tug on the arm he placed above the pillows in order to maximize her space, and without much hesitation he allowed her to pull his arm around her middle, fully relaxing her head onto the pillow and burrowing farther into the cocoon she'd constructed. Oh, oh this felt so nice. Her body heat permeated through the thinner layer of keratin right at his side, and that notorious exposed bit of flesh tingled at the temperature difference. She shifted gently, lying on her side toward him, the shift causing his large hand overhanging her body to brush the top of her ass; she didn't bother moving it. Raph stifled a shaking breath, reminding himself that this was an innocent sleep with his best friend. Even if he was becoming dangerously obsessed with what it might feel to touch all that soft skin without any cloth barriers. Shut up, he begged the recesses of his mind, and felt himself come back to a sleepy comfort once she stopped all her wiggling. As he allowed himself to relax, accidental touched be damned, he heard a faint whisper from behind him.
"Do you … always wear your bandana to bed?" He could feel the hopeful twinge of her voice, she wanted to make sure he was as comfortable as he would be without her, but he couldn't bring himself to give that full exposure, not yet."Sometimes, doesn't bother me." He felt the silence grow thick once again from behind his head, electing to give her a little leeway and shift his head to face her, not missing the way she caught her lower lip within her teeth as she stared downward, briefly lost in her own thoughts. Her gaze shifted, looking up to meet his eyes. This seemed to alleviate some of the worry as she allowed her lip to fall free and gifted him the tiniest smile before closing her eyes and squirming just that extra bit closer.
"Good night, Raphie." Thankful for her having closed her eyes, thus missing the dark dusting of turtle blush across his face, he pulled in just a bit tighter, shutting his own eyes.
"'Night night, princess."