Chapter 9-A Broken Spirit

It had taken over an hour for Donnie and April to clean and stitch both the old and new wounds up before bandaging them up to protect them. Luckily, the amount of blood that Mikey had lost during the fight was not enough for the need of another blood transfusion.

Now, Donnie, Raph, Master Splinter, April, and Casey were all in the shared bedroom upstairs, looking at a now awake but defeated-looking Mikey, who had kept his head low to avoid eye contact with the others.

Even though Raph, Master Splinter, April, and Casey felt sympathetic for Mikey, Donnie was not and was now beyond angry with his little brother as he looked at the wounded turtle with a firm expression on his face.

"What the shell were you thinking, Mikey…!?" He questioned, upset with his little brother's recklessness.

"…" Mikey didn't answer, and instead just turned his head to the side.

"Don't you turn away from me, bro! You were already badly injured from yesterday's bear attack, and now you just added a few more wounds after picking a fight with Leo!" Donnie spat out angrily.

"Donatello, calm yourself!" Master Splinter said firmly.

"Are you desperate for someone to end your life!? Is that it!?" Donnie questioned without thinking twice.

"Donnie!" "Donatello!" The others cried out in shock after hearing such a sentence come out of Donnie's mouth. They then watched as Mikey gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

"L-Leave me alone…" Mikey said whilst trying his best not to cry.

"That's not going to happen, Mikey…! Until you give me a good reason why you risked bleeding to death out there by challenging Leo to a fight, I'm not going anywhere!" Donnie countered in frustration due to still not getting a proper answer from his immediate younger brother.

The others around Donnie just stood and looked at him in shock and silence for a moment. They had never seen the normally calm and gentle purple-banded turtle so angry before, not even towards his own brothers.

"Geez, Donnie…I know yer mad, but ya don't have ta be dat hard on him…!" Raph said firmly.

"Look who's talkin'?" Casey bit back with a glare towards his best friend since he was still a bit upset with him and Leo for ganging up on Mikey the other day, making the red-banded turtle flinch and look away guiltily.

"Raph's right on one thing, though…Mikey's suffered enough already, and getting angry with him won't resolve anything…" April pointed out sadly, nodding in agreement with Raph's words.

Realising now that his way of speaking to his wounded brother was a bit too far, Donnie took a moment to calm himself down before he sat on the edge of the bed and placed a gentle hand on Mikey's good shoulder as he spoke.

"Mikey, please…I'm upset with what you did because I care about you, and I don't wanna lose you…!"

"None of us do!" April said in agreement, supporting Donnie's words.

"Yeah, bro! C'mon, talk ta us…!" Raph pleaded in an unusually soft tone.

As much as he didn't want to talk to anyone right now, Mikey knew that his brothers, father, and human friends were not going to leave him alone until he gave them an answer, so he took a deep breath and spoke whilst keeping his head low.

"W-Why keep me alive…?" That question made everyone freeze for a moment.

"What?" Donnie said, breaking the silence.

"N-Nothing I ever do is right…Y-You should've just left me to bleed to death back there…" Mikey answered miserably.

"Mikey, how many times do I have to tell you? I would never do that to you because you're my brother!" Donnie immediately reminded his brother firmly.

"H-How can I be? I-I…I'm no help to anyone…just good at getting you guys hurt or worse…!" Mikey countered with tears falling down his face as he tried his hardest to keep himself from sobbing again.

"Hey…Dat ain't true, bro…Cos ya ain't got a single bad bone in yer body…" He soothed despite his gruff voice.

"…So, you're on my side now…?" Mikey questioned with a slight glare when he looked at Raph.

"Err…Yeah, I guess so…" Raph answered awkwardly whilst rubbing the back of his neck. However, Mikey wasn't too happy about that answer and he asked him a different question whilst avoiding eye contact with him.

"Make your mind up, Raphie; do you love me or hate me?"

Raph quietly sighed. How was he supposed to answer that?

Sure, Mikey was an annoying pain in his shell and he would do anything to get away from him, but at the same time, Mikey was the kind of brother that had a heart of light, which would help cheer him up on a bad day and be there to entertain the family he loved.

"Listen, bro…There may have been times where I didn't want ya around cos I couldn't stand ya when ya get annoyin' or try ta tease me…but yer still important ta me cos I've always enjoyed yer company when we played video games together, and ya cook amazin' food fer us too! Also, yer know-it-all with superheroes and comics has saved us dozens of times before!" Raph explained sincerely to his brother.

"So, err…In other words; I love ya, bro…in a unique kinda way…" He then concluded bashfully.

"…O-Ok…" Mikey replied, still unsure of whether or not to believe in his brother's words.

Suddenly, Mikey felt himself being engulfed into a hug by strong but warm arms. He then figured out that those arms belonged to Raph after seeing a glimpse of the red-coloured bandana tails.

"I really mean it, lil' bro…" He heard Raph whisper softly in his brother's ear whilst slightly tightening the hug, causing Mikey to let out a small but pained grunt.

"Careful, Raph; he's still badly hurt…!" Donnie warned when he saw the pained look on Mikey's face.

"Oh, shell…Sorry…!" Raph exclaimed with a gasp as he immediately released Mikey.

"S'fine…" Mikey mumbled tiredly, still avoiding eye contact with his red-banded brother, who moved out of the way to give Donnie his space back to talk to Mikey again.

"Now, let me ask you again, Mikey…Why did you challenge Leo to a fight earlier?" Donnie asked in a firm but calmer manner this time.

Mikey knew that Donnie would question him again about what happened between him and Leo earlier, and the youngest turtle had a feeling that his brother would not leave him alone until he got an answer from him. Therefore, Mikey took another deep breath in and spoke his answer.

"E-Even the most severely wounded ninja still stands back up and keeps fighting…"

That sentence made Raph's and Donnie's eyes widen in realisation, because they had heard those words before.

"Wait, dat's-"

"What Leo said…during his scolding towards you days ago…" Donnie finished Raph's sentence. Mikey nodded whilst again trying to keep his emotions in check.

"I-I just couldn't take it anymore…being told that I'm just a burden to the family…who can't do anything to protect the ones they love, no matter how hard they try…I-I only wanted to make him come to his senses…by showing him that I could still fight, even with these injuries…" Mikey explained shakily.

"Mikey-"

"B-But I've realised now that I was wrong, and that it was all for nothing! Leo hates me even more now, and he'll never want anything to do with me again!" Mikey then said firmly, cutting Donnie off, before he slammed a fist on his bed.

"WHY DO I ALWAYS RUIN EVERYTHING!?"

After shouting that sentence, Mikey completely lost it and broke down with his face in his hands.

Everyone around him all just stood or sat in their places in a stunned silence. Seeing the youngest turtle crack and break down in front of them broke their hearts; having to go through and survive an intense battle with the most hated enemy was tough enough, but being led to believe that he was unwanted and to blame for what happened to his family by his own brother was just beyond cruel.

Donnie immediately moved closer to Mikey and engulfed him into a gentle hug whilst minding his injuries.

"Mikey, you don't ruin everything…and you're not a burden to us; we love you as you are…!" He said comfortingly.

"I-I just can't do this anymore…I-I've had enough…I-I give up…" Mikey muffled in Donnie's shoulder, his voice sounding so heartbroken.

"Shhh…It's going to be ok, Mikey…Don't give up on us now…" Donnie soothed whilst gently rubbing his brother's back.

Master Splinter watched this upsetting scene for another moment before he walked closer to the bed and placed a comforting hand on Mikey's arm.

"Michelangelo…" He called out softly to his son, who slowly moved his head to the side to see him, revealing his tearful face.

"D-Dad, I…I-I'm so sorry…" Mikey apologised shakily as more tears fell from his eyes.

"There is nothing for you to apologise for, my son…The Shredder is to blame for causing the damage to our family…" Master Splinter reassured whilst stroking his son's arm.

"I-I'll find a way to repay you…for protecting me, Sensei…I-I promise…" Mikey swore in a sad tone.

"You do not need to do that, Michelangelo…I have told you before; I jumped in front of the Shredder's attack because I love you…and I would do the same for all of my sons…" Master Splinter countered soothingly.

"P-Please…tell me…A-Am I…a failure to you all?" Mikey asked whilst still sniffling and hiccupping.

"No!" The others instantly answered firmly.

"Mikey, you have never failed us! You may have made a few mistakes in the past, but not one of them involved putting us all in danger…!" Donnie told him firmly.

"D-Don't lie to me…please…!" Mikey said in denial.

"I'm not, bro; it's the truth!" Donnie countered.

"N-No…I-I'm a screw-up…A-A burden…F-Failure…I-I don't have the right to be alive…I-I should've been left…to die on that ship…" Mikey muttered in a distant tone as he slowly lowered his head and leaned it against Donnie's shoulder before letting out another sob.

"Mikey…" Donnie said with a sigh, slightly tightening the hug whilst still minding his wounds.

Soon, the exhaustion from the events that happened these past two days had consumed Mikey, and he slowly fell asleep in Donnie's arms.

"Donnie…He's fallen asleep…" April told Donnie softly.

"I know…" Donnie replied quietly before he slowly and gently released Mikey from his hold and laid him back down onto his bed whilst being careful not to aggravate his wounds. He then covered his little brother with the blanket to keep him warm.

"Oh, bro…" Raph whispered sadly, shaking his head as he looked at the miserable and exhausted face of his now sleeping brother.

"Finally starting to have regrets now, Raph?" Donnie questioned his red-banded brother in a sad but slightly bitter tone without looking at him.

"…Yeah…Big time..." Raph answered miserably before he walked away and went downstairs to be alone.

Donnie didn't look at him as his immediate older brother left. He knew that he was a bit hard on Raph just then, but he felt that the red-banded turtle needed to learn the consequences of his own actions before he could forgive him properly. On the other hand, Donnie couldn't help but feel angry at himself too for just standing by and allowing Leo and Raph to shoot Mikey down with their cruel words.

The purple-banded turtle let out a defeated sigh before he wiped his eyes to remove the tears of guilt that were starting to develop in them. He then jumped slightly when he felt a soft and furry hand on his shoulder.

"I will look after your brother now, Donatello…you are tired, and have done well with treating and caring for him…" Master Splinter's soft voice was heard next to him, meaning that the hand belonged to him.

"B-But-"

"I will alert you if anything changes, my son…Now, go and rest your mind and spirit…" Master Splinter cut his purple-banded son off firmly but softly before he sat on the chair next to Mikey's bed.

"Come on, Donnie…Let's go get some coffee…" April offered kindly whilst placing a comforting hand on Donnie's other shoulder.

"Thanks, April…" Donnie said with a sad but grateful smile before he stood up and walked towards the stairs with April and Casey by his side.

Master Splinter watched them go before he turned his attention back to his youngest son. His face saddened even more when he looked at the hurt and heartbroken state of Mikey's sleeping face. He couldn't believe how much his youngest son was suffering all this time, and it had to take a horrible battle between Mikey and Leo to make him see it.

With this in mind, the old sensei made himself comfortable by sitting on the chair next to the bed, and then he placed a furry hand on one of Mikey's hands to let him know that he was there for him.