Chapter Text
The night was silent by the time Splinter finally turned out his light.
Mikey had laid awake, listening to Raph’s almost-snoring from across the room. It had proven to be difficult to lay still long enough to let the redhead think he was asleep, but he’d done it, and it boosted Mikey’s confidence just enough to make the rest of the plan seem feasible.
Once he was sure Splinter was away in his room, he slowly pulled back the blanket to reveal he hadn’t taken off his clothes before crawling into bed- heck, he hadn’t taken off his shoes. It would’ve taken too much precious time to put them back on, and that ran the risk of waking his brothers. He swung his legs off the bed and glanced around the room to make sure there was a clear path to the door before quickly sneaking off and out into the hallway, hopefully without waking Raph.
He pattered down the stairs as quietly as he could with his tennis shoes on, wincing when he stepped on that one stair that creaked. He glanced over his shoulder, but heard no creaking of floorboards from Leo and Donnie's room, and no scrambling to get up and defend the house from Raph, so he assumed they were too asleep to notice. He bolted over to the front door, heart thudding in his chest. He was nervous, but excited, and he suddenly found himself risking being found in favor of getting out into the cool midnight air.
He’d never felt so free. He let out a deep sigh as the front door swung shut quietly behind him. Worry of his brother’s finding him sneaking out so late at night was gone as he turned and ran down the sidewalk, grinning widely. He had the path to the park memorized and was quick to skid to a stop next to a bench, pulling his jacket back up over his shoulders. He hadn’t realized it’d fallen down in his excitement to get to the park.
He sat down on the bench, catching his break, and fiddled with his hands in his lap. He was giddy, heart pounding. He was filled with adrenaline from slipping out of the house and running to the park, and now he was waiting for-
“Hey Mikey,” someone rumbled from behind him, and the blonde haired looked up with a wide grin at where Leatherhead was looking down at him with a calm smile.
“Hi,” Mikey greeted, voice shaking a bit from the elated feeling in his nerves.
Leatherhead set a grocery bag down on the bench next to Mikey before walking around and sitting on the other side. “I made these for you.”
Mikey perked instantly, heart skipping a beat, and he pulled out a slightly warm container of chocolate chip cookies. “Aw, babe, you shouldn’t have.”
Leatherhead smiled softly. “I know, but I wanted to make them for you.”
Mikey leaned against him, his head only resting against the side of Leatherhead’s chest with how short he was. Leatherhead wrapped his arm around Mikey, enveloping him in warm protection against the colder breeze.
Mikey opened the container and pulled out a cookie, nibbling on the edge. They were still warm, freshly baked, and the chocolate chips were gooey enough to make a mess on Mikey’s lower lip when he bit into them. Leatherhead chuckled lightly as Mikey looked up at him curiously, and bent just far enough to kiss his lips and taste the chocolate off of them.
Mikey flushed and pressed his face into Leatherhead’s side, and he chuckled deeply. “I love you Mikey,” he murmured.
The younger nuzzled up against him, pressing into the larger’s warmth. “I love you too, L.”
The cookies were delicious, and as much as Leatherhead refused, Mikey managed to get him to eat a few. Leatherhead had Mikey pulled into his lap by the container was empty, and Mikey’s eyes were fluttering closed.
“Mmm… what time is it?” Mikey asked quietly, shifting so he could press further against Leatherhead’s torso.
The taller shifted with a frown. “... 3:02.”
“Shit!” Despite how exhausted Mikey was, he shot up into a sitting position. “I gotta get home!”
Leatherhead sat up. “Do you want me to walk with you?”
Mikey paused and looked at him. “... no, just in case someone is awake.”
He nodded understandingly and wrapped his arms around Mikey from behind. Mikey tilted his head back so he could kiss Leatherhead one last time.
“I love you, L,” he murmured.
“I love you too, Mike,” He rumbled, and Mikey revelled in the warmth before sliding off the bench and running home.