Archive of Our Own

Leo is having a shit day.

Everything started with a nightmare that left him trembling in Donnie’s arms for hours. His twin said nothing as he wrapped stiff arms around Leo, humming an unrecognizable tune. Leo hummed back, sounding hoarse in comparison to Donnie. They stayed like that for a while, Leo utterly embarrassed but growing more comfortable by the minute.

Flash forward a couple hours: Leo almost got chopped up and served alongside a steaming serving of jasmine rice. At least Meat Sweats has taste, but Leo was still a bit upset about it.

“And, then, he chopped onions right next to me!” Leo whines as he and his brothers enter Run of the Mill Pizza. “Totally unnecessary torture!”

Donnie rolls his eyes. “Oh, how could I ever understand your pain, dear brother? He says sarcastically.”

“Exactly!”

The four of them slide into their typical booth, Leo jabbing Donnie’s plastron as he slides next to him. He picks up a menu, despite knowing they will be getting the same meal they always get. He starts to bite his nails before noting Raph’s glare and putting his hand on his lap instead.

“You good, Leo?” Says the oldest brother, squinting slightly.

“Oh, yeah!” Leo places down the menu. “I was just being overdramatic about the whole Meat Sweats thing! Nothing ol’ Leon can’t handle!” He shoots Raph the most awkward finger guns in existence.

“That’s not … yeah, okay.”

Leo flashes his signature cocky grin that makes everyone groan a bit. It’s as if there are sparkles surrounding his face.

For a moment, he feels as if someone is watching him. His eyes dart around the room, only catching a flash of white, before he shrugs and decides it must be all in his head. Since the Krang, he’s had too many moments in which he assumes someone is out to get him when nothing is there.

“Must we get pineapple this time?” Donnie grumbles. “And before you argue that I can simply pick it off, the taste still remains.”

Leo punches his twins arm. “Stop complaining! It’s not nearly as bad as you’re making it seem.”

“As the culinary artist of the family,” Mikey butts in, raising his hand despite already speaking. “I agree with Donnie. There is no true romance between pineapple and pizza.”

Donnie nods at Mikey. “This is why you’re my favorite, Michael.”

Mikey beams and Leo grumbles before deciding to slap Donnie, resulting in a pathetic slapping match that lasts a couple seconds before Raph interjects.

“Half pineapple, half no pineapple!” He says, finally shutting the other’s up. “Jeez, there was a simple solution there to begin with.”

“Yes, but I enjoy annoying my dearest twin.” Leo pats Donnie’s head as if he is a cat, which isn’t too far off because Donnie hisses at him in return.

Hueso approaches their table, sighing at the conundrum they are making. “What can I get you boys?”

Raph clears his throat before ordering their food, careful to be specific about their alterations.

Donnie turns his attention to his phone, working on some new coding technique. Mikey snatches a kids menu from Hueso’s apron, using the crayons to draw all types of vibrant drawings on the paper. Leo sighs, left to his own thoughts. He still feels like he’s being watched and, after debating it in his mind, decides to buy into his suspicions. He scans the restaurant again, peering at all the Yokai happily enjoying their dinner, until he lock eyes with someone in the booth across from them.

Staring right back at him is a white rabbit Yokai. He wears an oversize black hoodie with a red panda logo that Leo recognizes, but can’t quite place. He also has on a pair of ripped black jeans and black boots. The rabbit’s ears twitch slightly and he turns away from Leo as he ties his ears into a ponytail with a blue ribbon. Leo smiles at this.

“Nardo?” Donnie’s rough voice snaps Leo out of his staring session. “You’re drooling over the pizza.”

“What?” Leo looks down at the table then realizes there is now a pizza on the table in front of them. When did that get there? “Oh … sorry.” He grabs a slice with pineapple on it and nearly misses his mouth when he attempts to take a bite.

“God, can you stop being gay for one moment?” Donnie rolls his eyes, but is secretly entertained by his brother’s lovey doveness.

“I’m not being gay! I just … was looking at his hoodie.”

All his brothers exchange glances before shrugging and returning to their food. As they chat lightly, Leo attempts to sneak another glance at the captivating stranger, but he’s nowhere to be found. The table is completely cleared off and the rabbit is gone.

“Lose your princess?” Mikey laughs, mouth full.

“That’s not fair.” Raph says and Leo is grateful for a moment. “Leo is obviously the princess.”

Donnie snorts, almost spitting out the water in his mouth. Leo sticks his tongue out at all them before sadly focusing on his pizza for the rest of their time there.

🐢🐰

“I’m just so delicious you had to come back for seconds, huh?!” Leo yells as he dodges the ginormous tenderizer Meat Sweats throws his way. “Dude, not cool!”

They’re in an alleyway a couple of blocks away from Run of the Mill pizza. Meat Sweats must’ve followed them and waited to attack again after earlier today. He smiles wildly as he swings at Mikey, making the turtle back-flip away and land in a dumpster.

“Ow!” Mikey exclaims, but the only thing that’s hurt is his ego. “What is your problem, man?”

“Yeah …” Donnie says, tapping his cheek as he leans against a wall, acting as if the fight in front of him isn’t relevant. “He never tracks us down like this. I doubt all this is about cooking Leo.”

Leo glares at his brother before swinging at Meat Sweats again. He misses, almost falling down, but regains his balance quickly. “Really, Don?! He tied me to a chair with rice noodles!”

“Not everything is about you.”

Leo scowls and prepares to snap back at his brother before Meat Sweats attempts to hit him again. And he would’ve been hit if Raph didn’t jump in, using his mystic magic to create two extra fists that punch Meat Sweats in the gut. The pig mutant stumbles back before hitting the concrete, instantly being knocked out.

“Like a boss!” Raph laughs, his real fist bumping the mystic one before letting his magic fizzle away. “Next time less talking, more punching.”

“Yeah, Donnie!” Leo growls at his twin, who is still leaning against the wall. “You didn’t even try to hit the guy.”

“Mm …” Donnie steps forward, eyeing the pig mutant knocked out on the floor. “Did you notice he barely talked? That’s unusual for him. He’s usually all about the villain banter.”

“So?” Leo is annoyed now, wiping away the dust on his plastron. “Can we go home now? I’m not in the mood.”

Mikey jumps out of the dumpster, startling Leo. Both Donnie and Raph note his jumpiness, but decide not to mention it. The youngest turtle squints then sniffs the air.

“Do y’all smell that?” He asks.

“I think what you’re smelling is garbage because you were just in a dumpster.” Leo snaps.

“No.” Mikey ignores Leo’s tone. “I mean, it smells like …” Another sniff. “Pizza puffs?”

Everyone freezes, remembering the first situation with the delicious pizza inspired snacks. After a moment, Donnie pulls out his phone and checks the news. He sighs and shows the headline to his brothers: “Tony Lou’s Pizzeria Shut Down After Customers Get Extreme, Strange Food Poisoning!”

“They just recently reopened after the DIGG incident!” Donnie says, filled with anguish. “Okay, this was posted around the time that we were busy with Meat Sweats. It was a distraction!”

“So he didn’t kidnap me because I am scrumptious?” Leo contemplates the situation before gasping. “Guys, we just left Hueso’s! Do you think …?”

They all exchange a glance before running back towards Run of the Mill, bursting through the portal. The customers glare at them, unhappy to have the peace disturbed.

“Don’t panic!” Raph yells, voice laced with panic. “Just … raise your hand if you ate some pizza puffs.”

There is a moment of silence and the turtles are almost relieved, thinking they got there in time, before patrons slowly begin to raise their hands. Almost everyone in the restaurant has their hand up now.

“Uh oh.” Leo slaps his forehead.

Donnie sighs. “I’m sure I can create an antidote this time now that I am not a victim of the poison. We may be here for a while though.” He scans the restaurant. “Nobody leaves! And if you try to eat another pizza puff I will tranquilize you!”

He grabs a pizza puff off a random yokai’s plate and heads towards the kitchen. There is a commotion for a moment before Hueso is shoved out of the kitchen door and into the dining area.

“Why is that mad scientist in my kitchen?!” He growls. “He says those pizza puffs are poison? They were a special delivery and they seem fine to me!”

Just then, Hueso’s pinky bone floats away from the rest of him. The skeleton looks at his finger in awe before rolling his eyes and walking away from the turtles, no longer bothering to argue.

Leo sighs dramatically, collapsing into a booth and putting his head on the table, despite how sticky and gross it is. “Today is not my day.” He grumbles. “Imma nap.”

“Right, uh …” Raph looks at Leo for a moment, contemplating saying something. “Mike and I are gonna go deal with Meat Sweats outside. You rest, lil’ bro.” He gives Leo’s shell a gentle rub on his shell before heading out.

Leo is grateful for his brother’s willingness to leave him alone for a moment. He’s so tired. He’s been tired a lot lately, constantly waking up in the middle of the night due to nightmares and not being able to fall back asleep. His brothers notice his tiredness, jumpiness and overall bad mood, but it’s so hard to bring it up when Leo is so intent on hiding it all with grins and jokes. But he’d rather they just ignore it when he wants them to and let him rest.

Leo’s drifts to sleep, despite the noise of the upset yokai in the restaurant. He sleeps for a couple hours, but it feels like only minutes before a furry finger is poking his head and he shots up, fists raised and ready to fight any attacker.

On the other side of the table, the rabbit yokai from before raises his hands up. “Whoa, whoa, sorry!” His voice is soft and sincere.

Leo instantly lowers his fists, embarrassed. “S-sorry, I-“ He’s shaking. Fuck.

“I shouldn’t’ve have disturbed you.” The rabbit says, approaching each word carefully. Leo thinks he can melt into the gentleness of his voice. “I will leave you be.” He gets up and starts to walk away before Leo grabs his arm.

“No, uh …” Leo realizes that he’s touching a complete stranger and pulls his hand away. “Sorry. You can stay. I could … use the company.”

The rabbit smiles gently before sitting back down. “Yuichi Usagi.” The rabbit says.

“Hm?”

“My name.”

“Oh, duh!” Leo slaps his forehead. “I’m Leonardo Hamato.”

“Sounds familiar.” Usagi looks deep in thought.

“Oh, well, our dad named us after these famous artist dudes.” Leo says, feeling his usual charm come back to him. “I don’t know much about art, but I am a work of art myself.”

Usagi laughs, making Leo beam. “Well, sure, but I meant the last name. Maybe I have met a member of your family.”

“Oh, yeah! There’s a whole clan or whatever. I don’t know.”

“So, the rest of the turtles are your brothers, correct?”

“Yes!” He smiles and Usagi admires how happy he gets at the mention of his family. “The big, scary-looking one is Raph. Don’t worry; he’s actually a sweetie. The tiny ball of sunshine is Mikey. And the annoying one in the purple hoodie is my twin, Donnie. He’s not really my twin, obviously, but we’re around the same age, so why not say we are? He’s the one in the kitchen making the antidote.”

“Right.” Usagi nods. “Hueso appreciates what you guys are doing, although he has an odd way of showing it.”

“How do you know Hueso?” Leo asks, remembering how the rabbit appeared to have left earlier but was still here.

Usagilooks embarrassed suddenly. He clears his throat. “I live here with him and work in the kitchen. He took me in a couple weeks ago after I ran into some trouble in the city.”

“Ah.”

They don’t talk for a while after that, Leo fidgeting with his own hands and Usagi just looks at him as though he is deep in thought, analyzing the turtle. Leo feels very vulnerable and desperately searches for a new topic of conversation.

“Oh!” Leo says suddenly, ignoring his voice crack. “Your hoodie … what’s that image from?”

Usagi looks down at the red panda image from his shirt and looks sheepish. “Do you know Jupiter Jim?”

“Oh, of course I know Jupiter Jim! Omigosh! I’m, like, obsessed with him.” Leo starts to bounce his leg, making the table shake. “That’s not Red Fox though.”

Usagi is bouncing now too, though he exhibits a bit more control. “Well, in the Red Fox spin-off series, there’s this village of other red pandas! This is their symbol!”

“I never watched that! I should! What’s your favorite Jupiter Jim movie?”

“Jupiter Jim Sails The Seven Galaxies!”

Suddenly, Leo reaches across the table and seizes Usagi’s soft hand. “Will you marry me?”

The rabbit bursts out laughing, not pulling his hand away, and Leo joins him in laughter after a moment. They lock eyes and both of them feel the same bubbling joy inside them. Like they have been making each other laugh for years. The laughter dies down. They stay like that, looking at each other, for what feels like forever.

“Hello, dear brother!” Donnie appears out of nowhere, sliding next to Leo and making him lose his grip on Usagi. Donnie smirks at the rabbit. “Oh, I see you have found Prince Charming.”

Leo slaps his hand over his twin’s mouth. “Haha, what are you talking about, D?” He feels saliva on his hand and instantly pulls it away. “Did you spit on my hand?!”

“Obviously.”

Usagi watches the two of them, admiration in his eyes. “I didn’t get a chance to introduce myself to you earlier, Donnie. My name is Yuichi Usagi.” He extends a hand.

Donnie glares at the gesture. “I don’t do handshakes.”

“Oh.” Usagi opts to wave instead.

“May I ask you a sensitive question?”

“I guess?”

“Are you gay?”

Leo decides he is going to suffocate Donnie in his sleep. He hisses at him. “Donnie! You can’t just-!”

“It’s alright, Leonardo.” Usagi chuckles and turns back to Donnie. “Yes, I am. Are you?”

Donnie nods, satisfied. “Somewhat, but that’s irrelevant. Anywho … “

Leo buries his face in his hands, utterly embarrassed. He knows exactly why Donnie did that. Whenever Leo has a crush, he tends to not do anything about it because there’s the chance that the subject of his desires might not be gay. Then he’ll complain about it to Donnie for ages. Last time, Donnie swore that he would simply ask the next crush if he is gay or not. And Donnie keeps his promises.

“So!” Donnie raises his pointer finger to the air. “The antidote is ready. The staff is currently mixing it with lemonade so it isn’t entirely gross. Raph texted a while ago saying he gave Meat Sweats a very stern talking to then they headed back to the Lair because Mikey is exhausted. Now we can head home too. I need my beauty sleep. Status report over.”

Leo nods, not exactly comprehending any of what Donnie had just said.

Usagi clears his throat. “Thank you for your help. You must have a brilliant mind if you were able to create an antidote so quickly.”

Donnie grins. “Why, thank you!” He turns to Leo. “See, the prince here actually appreciates my genius unlike some people.”

“Okay!” Leo jumps up, nearly bumping into the table. “Didn’t you say you want to sleep, Donnie? Let’s go home!” He pushes his twin out of the booth, then turns to Usagi. “It was really nice meeting you!”

“You too!” The rabbit grins widely and Leo imagines seeing him smile every day. Usagi takes a pen out of his pocket and grabs Leo's arm. He writes down a series of numbers and a smiley face at the end. “My number!”

Leo smiles back at him. He tries to think of something witty and cute to say, but his mind is completely blank.

Donnie rolls his eyes. “You could’ve written it on that napkin on the table.”

“Okay, bye Usagi! I’ll text you later! Good night!” Leo shoves Donnie out of the restaurant despite his twin's protests. When they’re finally outside, Leo lets out a high-pitched squeal. He pumps his fist in the air then. Calming down, he looks at the number on his arm. “I will never wash this arm again.”

Donnie scowls. “Disgusting.” He starts walking at his typical fast pace, making Leo hurriedly catch up. “I’m glad that cheered you up.”

“What?”

“Today wasn’t a good day for you, so I’m glad there was a pretty face to make you feel better.” Donnie smiles sincerely at his brother. “Hopefully he’ll be around on other days too.”

“Yes!” Leo couldn’t stop himself from giggling. “I got a hot guy to talk to me by just lying around and being cute.”

Donnie snorts, but attempts to mask it with a cough.

Leo raises an imaginary eyebrow. “What was that?”

“What was what?” Donnie fends ignorance. They’ve made it to the Lair now. Donnie starts to walk towards his room, not looking at Leo.

“The snort!” Leo imitates the sound.

“Oh, it’s just …” He laughs. “I told him that I had a brother in the dining area who was being too quiet, so I needed him to make sure you weren’t dead because I was already in the middle of something with the antidote.” Donnie winks before entering his room and shutting the curtain.

Leo shakes his head, both embarrassed and grateful. There are a lot of things Donnie isn’t good at, but being a wingman is not one of them. Even if he tries his best to embarrass Leo at all times.

Leo rushes into his room, nearly breaking his mattress when he jumps on top of it. He pulls out his phone and copies the number, making a new contact. He sends a message.

Leo: hi! this is leo 🐢💙😉

Almost immediately, Usagi starts typing back. Leo is bouncing like an idiot.

Usagi 🐰: hi :)

Usagi 🐰: u text like a gay dork

Leo: uh, ouch

Leo: true tho

Usagi 🐰: do u want to swing by during my lunch break tomorrow

Usagi 🐰: i get free pizza

Leo: hell, yea! i’m always down for free pizza

Usagi: is that all ur in it for?

Leo: definitely 😘

Usagi 🐰: uh, ouch

Usagi 🐰: 12:30

Usagi 🐰: see you then! good night

Leo: night! 💙

It suddenly occurs to Leo that maybe he shouldn’t be using that many hearts for someone he just met. He’ll be tormented by that later. For now, he shuts his phone off and digs his head into his pillow before passing out.

He dreams of white fur instead of than pink tentacles.

🐢🐰

Leo wakes up to Mikey crushing his ribs.

“Wake up!” His younger brother squeals after bouncing on top of him. “I made breakfast!”

“Whatcha make?” Leo rubs sleep from his eyes.

“Waffles! There’s strawberries and whipped cream for you.”

“This is why I love you.”

Mikey smiles then wiggles imaginary eyebrows. “Love me enough to tell me about your new boyfriend?” He stretches out the last word like a piece of gum.

“What?!” Leo asks, but Mikey is already rushing out of his room.

As Leo throws his cover off, he decides he is going to kill Donnie for blabbing about Usagi to the others. He checks his phone. It’s 8:13. No new notifications. “Of course he hasn’t texted you.” Leo says to himself. “Why would he?”

He throws on a blue Jupiter Jim t-shirt, a pair of ripped dark blue jeans and some black skateboard shoes. He wonders if Usagi likes skateboarding too and smiles thinking about it. He’s so busy daydreaming about the rabbit he almost forgets to put his mask on.

When he enters the kitchen, the lights are dimmed. Donnie is at the counter, wincing while clutching onto a cup of coffee for dear life, with Mikey sitting beside him.

“Migraine?” Leo asks, but it’s more like a statement than a question. “Y’know what would help?”

“What, Nardo?”

“Sleeping instead of running on caffeine.” He blows his brother a kiss. Donnie gives him a scowl in return.

Mikey slides Leo’s plate to the seat closest to him. Leo grabs his fork and begins absolutely devouring his waffles. Soon his smacking can be heard throughout the kitchen.

Donnie glares at him. “Will you stop that?”

“Stop what?” Leo smacks louder.

“Leonardo.” He stresses each syllable.

Leo stops, knowing exactly how to annoy Donnie without completely crossing the line. There’s a brief silence as the three of them eat for a while, but Mikey can’t handle silence for long.

“So!” Mikey turns to Leo. “Usagi, huh?”

“That is certainly his name.” Leo says.

“How bad is it?”

Leo squints at him, then turns his attention to Donnie who is trying his absolute hardest to not burst out laughing. It doesn’t work. Donnie starts to laugh so hard that tears form in his eyes.

“Sorry …” He wipes his eyes. “It’s just, you asked him to marry you!”

Mikey chokes on his food. “Wh-what?”

“You heard that?!” Leo thinks he will simply die of embarrassment. He turns to Mikey. “It was a joke. Obviously.”

Donnies snorts. “Gay people are a joke.”

“Stop being homophobic!”

“Stop being gay!”

Raph enters the kitchen now, still sleepy. There is a comically small pink teddy bear clutched in his comically large hands.

“Good morning.” He gives them all a brief head rub. “I love waking up to the sweet sound of homophobia.” He looks at Leo. “The rabbit?”

Leo nods. “His name’s Yuichi Usagi.”

“Ah, Japanese. Splinter will like him.”

Leo hadn’t even realized the name is Japanese, to be honest. And now he is thinking about introducing him to Splinter. He imagines approaching Splinter with Usagi hand in his hand and saying ‘Dad, this is my boyfriend’.

Oh, this is bad.

Leo doesn’t realize he’s zoning out until Donnie waves his hand in front of him and says something. “Earth to Leo? Please return from Planet Homosexuality.”

He snaps out of his fantasy and is immediately imagining slapping Donnie instead. He sighs. “I’m going to Hueso’s for lunch. Do you guys want me to bring anything back for you?”

“Why don’t we just go with you?” Mikey asks innocently.

Donnie responds before Leo can. “Because we’re not invited. It’s just him and Usagi. Right, Leo?”

“Yeah.” Leo picks at what’s left of us food. “I mean, I guess you guys could come. It isn’t like a date or anything.”

Mikey ponders this for a moment, wanting pizza but knowing his brother wanted some alone time with Usagi. He smiles. “We don’t have to come! Just bring me back a slice of my usual!”

Leo nods, a grin on his face. The other two say the same as Mikey and Leo pulls his phone out of his pocket to set a reminder so he actually gets their food. There’s a text notification from Usagi.

Usagi 🐰: what kinda pizza do u like? so i can already have it ready for us.

Leo smiles as he hurriedly responds.

Leo: the #3 with extra pineapple!

His brothers look at him in amusement as he waits for Usagi’s response. It’s as if Leo is afraid his phone will disappear if he looks away or even blinks. Another notification.

Usagi 🐰: actually, Hueso is insisting on giving me the day off bc my leg hurts, so u can come by whenever u want :)

Leo: oh, awesome!

Leo: i mean, not awesome that ur leg hurts. but awesome that i can come by sooner

Leo: sorry djhdjjd

Usagi 🐰: i know what u meant, silly

Leo: ok good

Leo: i’ll leave now! donnie is getting on my nerves lol

Usagi 🐰: awesome :)

Leo taps his feet against the floor rapidly before shooting up from his seat. “I’m actually gonna leave right now!” He’s incredibly nervous, but his excitement overrides his anxiety.

Raph and Mikey bid him farewell, barely paying attention as they continue with their food. Donnie, however, grabs him by the arms before he can escape.

“Did you …?” Donnie glances at the other two. He scrunches his face up and Leo starts to worry before he speaks again. “Remarnights?”

Leo blinks, taking a moment to process. Their secret twin language is rarely used. Not because they don’t like using it, but because it’s a stupid secret language. It simply involves switching around a couple syllables. But Mikey and Raph both had enough trouble comprehending plain English sometimes, so it makes sense that they couldn’t understand the single word that was just said: Nightmares.

Leo nods swiftly before smiling a bit. “Nefi I’m.” I’m fine.

Donnie scans his face, looking for any telltale signs of a lie. No lie detected. He lets out a huff of approval before releasing Leo’s arm, going back to concentrating on his cup of coffee.

As he’s headed towards his room, Leo makes a mental note to do something nice for Donnie later. Sure, he loves to pretend that his twin is the most annoying presence in his life, but he really doesn’t know what he’d do without him. He remembers how yesterday Donnie hadn’t even planned to mention sending Usagi Leo’s way. He’s just really bad at keeping things from him.

When Leo enters his room, he scans his reflection in a mirror leaning against the wall. He’s looked better (like during his brief blonde era, ew), but he’s looked worse (like after the Krang battle, double ew). He figures there’s no point in analyzing his appearance. He looked much worse yesterday due to his awful mental state and Usagi didn’t seem to mind. It’s nothing to worry about.

He grabs his sword from his bedside. It should be kept somewhere more proper, but he finds comfort in having it near him while he sleeps. He swings his sword to create a portal, concentrating on where he wanted to end up: Run of the Mill Pizza. When he’s satisfied with the size of the portal, he steps through.

The savory smells of the establishment hit him first. He sucks in a long breath of deliciousness before the moment is interrupted by a very annoyed Hueso.

“What did I say about creating portals in the restaurant, pepino?” The skeleton sighs. “Remember when you broke that table?”

“That’s an odd way to greet your favorite customer!”

Hueso peeks behind Leo before raising an eyebrow. “Raphael is not with you.”

Leo places a hand over his plastron, acting as if he has been punched in the gut. Hueso simply rolls his eyes. As he turns to go back to work, he says, “Usagi’s room is through the back door and up the stairs.“

“Thanks, old man!”

Leo is sure Hueso has some rude words to say about that, but he is already rushing to the back of the restaurant and pushing through the backdoor. There’s a door to the kitchen to the right, then a staircase that he walks up. The door nearest to the staircase has a little drawing of a bunny on it, which Leo chuckles at. He clears his throat before knocking on the door.

“Hueso, I swear to god, if you make one more joke about Leo I will—!” Usagi yells as he opens the door. He jumps back a bit when he sees Leo instead of the skeleton. “Oh! You got here quickly! Uh …” He peers down at his blue and gray plaid pajama pants, embarrassed. He’s also wearing a cropped black tank top.

It takes Leo a couple moments to focus his brain away from Usagi’s looks to say anything. “Sorry. I have a portal sword!” He points to his sword to show it off. “Gets me places quick … er.”

“Cool … one moment!” He slams the door.

The force of the slam causes the bunny drawing to fall off. Leo catches it before it touches the floor. He holds it while he waits for the door to reopen, which only takes a couple moments of Usagi hurriedly changing. The door swings open again.

“Okay.” Usagi says. He’s now wearing an oversized Jupiter Jim shirt with the exact same design as Leo’s except it’s grey and a pair of grey sweatpants. “Hi.” His voice is like honey.

“Hi.” Leo smiles and hands the drawing to him. “May I actually come in this time?”

“Yes, please do!”

He opens the door fully now and Leo steps in.

Usagi’s room is not unlike Leo’s. There are lots of posters from different forms of media on the wall, but Jupiter Jim is the character that shows up most. Several pieces of clothing decorate the floor, some of which Usagi awkwardly shoves under his bed with his foot. And his bed is unmade with several blankets thrown on top.

“Uh …” Usagi attempts to organize the blankets but gives up when he can’t seem to get them to work correctly. “Sorry about the mess! Thought I’d have a lil’ bit longer to straighten up before you got here.”

“Hey, you never have to worry about anything being straight with me.” He winks. There is a mental image of Donnie cringing in his head.

Usagi laughs at the awful joke. They both stand there for a moment, looking at each other then desperately trying to find something else to look at. Leo’s sword catches Usagi’s eye, while Leo zones in on the Nintendo Switch on Usagi’s bed.

“May I?” They say in sync as they both inch towards the object they desire. They both laugh before deciding that was permission enough.

They sit on the bed, Leo with his legs crossed in the middle while Usagi sits on the edge. Usagi’s eyes seem to glimmer as he stares at Leo’s sword, as if entranced by its energy. He swings it around a couple times, careful to avoid Leo’s head.

“You’re pretty good at that.” Leo comments, smiling at the rabbit before returning to selecting his character in Mario Kart. He picks Mario.

“Thanks.” Usagi gives the sword one last look, almost solemnly, before leaning it against the wall. He scoots closer to Leo, crossing his legs as well. Their knees touch and both of them are painfully aware of that fact, but attempt to ignore it. Usagi eyes the screen Leo is now entirely focused on. “Mario, really?”

“Yeah, what about it?”

“I didn’t think people actually liked Mario. I mean, unless they’re trying too hard to be the main character.”

Leo whips his head towards Usagi and puts on a fake sad face. “Trying?! You think I’m not the main character?”

“Gay people don’t get to be the main character.”

“Damn. I guess I’m straight.” Leo winks before turning back to the screen. The game is about to start. “Who do you main?”

“Toadette.” He smiles softly. “She’s cute and speedy as fuck. I have no shame.”

“Fair, fair.” Leo grits his teeth as the game begins. He’s already behind, having been mixed up by the controls. “I have the old Switch, so I gotta get used to this.”

“Maybe you just suck.” Usagi snickers. He leans closer to Leo, an attempt to get closer to him disguised as a need to be closer to the screen. The turtle doesn’t seem to notice.

They are both silent for the rest of the game, aside from a couple frustrated noises from Leo and the occasional laugh from Usagi. Leo gets second place, only barely behind Waluigi.

“That sucked!” Leo groans, tossing the Switch onto another area on the bed.

“Second place isn’t so bad.”

“I don’t do second place.” He sighs. “Ask Donnie.”

“Asshole.” Usagi says, but he is smiling like an idiot because he is strangely attracted to the assholery. It didn’t take him long to figure out that behind his bells and whistles, Leo is a kind soul. When he is mean to his family, it is because he loves them enough that he could never truly mean it.

“Oh, hey!” Leo interrupts Usagi’s train of thought. “What was Hueso saying about me? The jokes or whatever.”

“He called you stupid and annoying.” Okay, technically Usagi isn’t lying. Hueso frequently called Leo these things, even though the jokes Usagi was referring to earlier were about the romantic tension between the rabbit and the turtle.

“That sounds like him.” He shrugs, totally believing him. He reaches for the Switch before offering it to Usagi. “Would Toadette like to play?”

“Toadette would love to play.”

So they play Mario Kart for about two hours. Usagi is clearly better, practicing a patience that Leo does not have nor understand. The story of the tortoise and the hare suddenly seems like a myth. Between games, they talk to each other. Leo talks about his family and cool fights (he leaves out anything about a certain species of pink aliens). Usagi reveals a bit about his past: different adventures in the Hidden City from stealing groceries to random street fights. What intrigues Leo most is the mention of a pet dinosaur.

“Dinosaur?!” Leo bounces and flaps his hands slightly. “Bro, why are you just now mentioning you have a dinosaur?!”

“Well …” Usagi smiles sadly. “Had.”

“Oh?” Leo scoots closer to Usagi, their legs now pressing together even more. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to-”

“No, don’t be sorry! It’s okay. His name was Spot. He isn’t dead or anything but …” He clears his throat. “I got into this fight with a bunch of these really bad yokai and they were going to
hurt him, so I told him to run. And he ran. That’s the fight that messed up my leg.” Suddenly, his leg itches and he reaches to scratch it before stopping and hovering over the limb. It’s hard to tell with the white fur he’s covered in, but Leo now notices that the skin in that area is extremely raw. The rabbit clears his throat before continuing. “After, someone found me in an alleyway nearby and brought me here. Hueso let me stay after learning I stayed on the streets.”

“Jeez, that’s-” Leo doesn’t really know what to say. “I’m sorry.”

Usagi looks as though he is about to cry, eyes watering and nose twitching slightly. He quickly shakes his head, as if to shake away any thoughts of crying, and straightens his posture a bit too much. “Sorry! You didn’t ask about all that! Just … yeah, I couldn’t find Spot.

“To quote a very wise rabbit,” Leo clears his throat and does his best to imitate Usagi’s voice. “Don’t be sorry.”

It’s a pretty bad impression, causing Usagi to laugh. Leo joins in. Their laughs sound beautiful together.

“God, I love …” Usagi starts, then quickly chokes on his own words. The next word out of his mouth was going to be ‘you’. Considering he just met this guy yesterday, Usagi figures maybe that would not be the best thing to blurt out. He searches for an alternative. “Pizza! I love pizza! Our pizza should be done now actually! I’ll go check!” He hops off the bed, nearly falls over, catches himself and does a very awkward thumbs up before practically running out of the room, leaving a very confused Leo alone on the bed.

“Did he almost say …” Leo wonders aloud. “Nah, only I would be stupid enough to almost do something like that.”

He grabs his phone from his pocket and instantly cringes when he sees his notifications. Three missed calls from Donnie. That can’t be good. He calls back.

When Donnie answers, he is clearly annoyed. “Why, hello. Seems you have remembered my existence.”

“Sorry. Got distracted.”

“Homosexuality truly is distracting our youth.” He sighs. “Anyways, how’s it going?”

“It’s going great! He …” There are so many wonderful descriptions that Leo could use for Usagi, but he can’t put it into the right words. “He’s just great.”

“Good. That’s good.” There’s a moment of silence and Leo can practically hear the gears turning in his twin’s head. “Well … that’s all.”

“That’s all?”

“Yup.” He pops the ‘p’.

“Dude, you called three times.” He squints. Something is clearly off. “Seemed pretty important.”

“Making sure you’re okay is important to me.” Donnie realizes that sounded entirely too serious. “I just mean that you were really excited about this and I didn’t want the dude to break your heart or whatever, y’know?”

Leo doesn’t bother questioning him further. “I know. Don’t worry. My heart is fully intact, although it is beating super hard.” He smiles. “Hope I don’t have a heart attack. He might need to give me CPR.”

“Ew!” Donnie fake gags. “I’m hanging up now.”

“Wait!” Leo sputters out. “Weird question, but have you ever seen a dinosaur on those security cameras you hack into?”

“Weird question indeed, but hold on.” He taps away on his wrist technology. “I did happen to see something that looked like a dinosaur tail a while back. At the time, I thought I was simply delirious from lack of sleep, but it appears that my mind was not playing tricks on me. I’m sending you an image right now.”

Leo fumbles with his phone as he quickly opens the text Donnie just sent. Sure enough, there is an image of a dinosaur in his inbox. He’s green with yellow spots along his body. He looks so lost. Leo figures there aren’t very many dinosaurs wandering around New York City, so the little guy on the screen has to be Spot.

“Donnie, you’re the best!” Leo beams. “Think you can find him for me?”

“Yes, I am, and yes, I can.” He’s already tapping frantically. “May I ask why you are suddenly aware of a prehistoric creature roaming New York City?”

“Well …” Leo prepares to explain the situation before he notices footsteps approaching the room. “Actually, I’ll explain when I get home.”

“Don’t want Prince Charming to find out about your dinosaur hunt?”

“I will murder you with your own precious technology, Donnie.”

Leo hears snickering from the doorway and turns to find Usagi standing there with a pizza box in hand, waiting for Leo as if it is not his own room.

“Hate to interrupt a murder threat, but I come bearing gifts!” He plops down next to Leo and places the pizza box on both of their laps. “Tell Donnie I say hi.”

Donnie hears him and speaks, the volume high enough for Usagi to hear. “I offer similar greetings. What gifts do you bear for my brother?”

“Pizza.”

“With extra pineapple!” Leo adds.

Donnie grimaces. “You both disgust me.” He yawns. “Time to pass out for a very long time to make up for my sleep deprivation.”

Leo sighs. “You drive me crazy, D.”

“Love you too! Bye!” The call ends.

Usagi laughs as he opens the pizza box. “Aww, he loves you.” He teases.

“I will end him.” Leo's threat is completely diminished by the fact that he is now attempting to shove an entire slice of pizza in his mouth.

They sit for a while, eating and talking about whatever is on their mind. Before long, it’s 1 PM.

Leo sighs. “I’m bored!”

“Oh, I bore you?” Usagi sets the pizza box on the floor, telling himself he’ll simply throw it away later.

“No! Just … Do you wanna go somewhere?”

The rabbit scrunches his nose and his whiskers twitch, which Leo finds simply adorable. “Like where?”

“Rooftop, maybe?”

Usagi can’t help but smile. “I have not explored the human rooftops. Sure, let’s go.”

“Great!” Leo grabs his sword and begins to raise it as if to create a portal before hesitating. “Actually, sorry, two things: one, you should bring a hoodie and two, I should stop by my place to grab a hoodie.”

“Okay.” Usagi grabs his red panda hoodie from underneath the bed. “May I tag along and say hi to your brothers? I didn’t properly greet the others.”

“Sure.” Swiftly, Leo creates the portal. It’s particularly easier for him to portal to his own home. He gestures for Usagi to go through. “Rabbits first.”

Usagi chuckles before walking into the strange fiery circle. He enters the living room, the most chaotic space in the Lair. Raph and Mikey, who were previously watching a cartoon, immediately jump up from their bean bags chairs at the sight of Usagi.

“Omigosh!” Mikey rushes towards him. “Hi! It’s you!”

“Hi?” Usagi barely gets the chance to say the word before his ribs are being crushed by the force of an unexpected hug from the young turtle. “Okay then.”

Just then, Leo enters through the portal. He immediately groans at the sight before him. “Mikey, you’re hurting him!”

Raph adds, “What did we say about hugging people you don’t know?” But Raph can’t hide his clear excitement about the guest as well.

“I do know him!” Mikey argues, but he does let go of Usagi and offers him an apologetic pat on the shoulder. He smiles at the rabbit. “Leo and Donnie told me all about you!”

“Oh, yeah?” Usagi chuckles. “What’d they say?”

Mikey opens his mouth then closes it and hums, thinking. “Well …” He looks Usagi up and down. “Your name is … Udagsi?”

The three others burst out laughing, Usagi bending over slightly from the force of his laughter. When this dies down, Raph steps forward and extends an arm. Usagi takes it and the force of the handshake nearly sends him flying.

“I’m Raph.” The oldest turtle says. “Sorry about Mikey. He’s … well, he’s Mikey.” He gives Mikey a small pat on the head.

Mikey grabs Usagi’s hand and drags him to a beanbag chair. The rabbit doesn’t do much to fight back, but Leo looks annoyed. Mikey pays him no attention.

“So!” Mikey bounces a bit as he looks Usagi up and down. “Tell me about yourself.”

Usagi laughs before giving Mikey the description he desires. Leo takes this as his sign to run and get his hoodie. At least he doesn’t have to handle introductions.

As he heads towards his room, he instinctively looks into Donnie’s room. He expects his twin to be in bed, as he had mentioned going to sleep and seemed exhausted, but the bed was empty. Weird. Leo ventures inside the room. It is neat, as usual. Donnie spends most of his time in his lab, so his room is merely a place to sleep, which he rarely does.

“D?”

No answer. Leo hums, thinking, when suddenly he hears someone hum in return. It’s coming from somewhere outside the room. He heads towards the noise and it leads him to his own room.

In the corner, curled into himself, is Donnie. He’s trembling and rocking himself, still humming. He doesn’t seem to register that Leo entered the room.

“Hey, Donnie.” Leo whispers, trying not to surprise him. “What’s up?”

Donnie doesn’t respond, but he does stop rocking and loosen up a bit. He peers at Leo, eyes devoid of any emotion.

“Okay.” Leo recognizes the look. He assumes his twin can’t speak right now, so he searches for another way to communicate. “Can I touch you?”

Donnie nods.

“Great.” He scoots closer to Donnie, his back now against the wall as well and their shoulders touching. Gently, he takes Donnie’s hand and pries it away from his body. “One squeeze for yes, two squeezes for no, three squeezes for ‘shut up’. Understand?”

Donnie squeezes his hand once.

“Good. This is easier than nodding and shaking your head. You don’t have to feel my eyes on you and I know your head may hurt. Does it?”

One squeeze.

Leo scans Donnie’s shaking body. There aren’t any apparent injuries, but he decides to ask anyway. “Are you injured at all?”

Two squeezes.

“Okay, good.” Leo closes his eyes, relieved. “When did … uh, I mean … okay, one squeeze for every ten minutes. About how long have you been like this?”

One, two, three, four squeezes.

“Forty minutes? Why didn’t you …?” Leo pauses and scrambles to get his phone out of his pocket, almost dropping it on the ground. It’s hard to handle with only one hand, but he manages to turn it on and sees two missed calls from Donnie 37 minutes ago. He also missed the reminder to grab his brothers a slice of pizza. He tosses the phone on the ground next to him. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve turned it on after I missed your calls the first time.”

Leo isn’t sure what to say now. He simply stays there, holding Donnie’s hand as he slowly calms down, his shaking dying down and his breathing steadying. When Donnie rests his head on Leo’s shoulder and goes limp, Leo assumes he’s fallen asleep and is therefore surprised when he squeezes his hand. Three times.

“Shut up?” Leo whispers. “Rude. I didn’t even say anything.”

Donnie clears his throat before speaking. His voice sounds pained, but he pushes himself to say it. “No … three means … mm, I love you.” He pauses then sighs. “I love you.”

Leo stares at him. It isn’t often that his brother vocalizes his love seriously. Leo wants to tackle him with affection, but refrains from overwhelming him. He squeezes Donnie’s hand three times.

🐢🐰

Usagi doesn’t want to be rude and interrupt Mikey’s rambling, but he’s beginning to worry about Leo. Surely it doesn’t take 15 minutes to grab a hoodie. Raph seems to be thinking the same thing because after a while he stands up and heads in the direction of Leo’s room.

“He gets distracted easily.” Mikey comments. “We have that in common.”

“I’ve noticed. We’ve bounced between 9 different topics.” Usagi smiles at the young turtle. He’s easy to talk to, like his brother, but the light inside of them are slightly different hues.

“Topic change #10!” Mikey jumps up from the beanbag chair and he shifts to a more serious energy. Usagi doesn’t know, but he is now face to face with Dr. Feelings. “What are your intentions with my brother?”

Usagi simply blinks and stares at him, not knowing what to say. Not that he would have the opportunity to speak anyways because Mikey keeps going.

“Clearly you are fond of him.” He taps his finger against his chin. “In the brief moment I saw you two together, your feelings were clear. That makes my job much easier. Now, the question is: what do you plan to do with those feelings?”

Usagi gulps. “Uh, what feelings?”

Mikey beams and stares directly into the rabbit’s soul. “The gay ones.”

Usagi doesn’t have a chance to respond before Raph seems to appear out of nowhere. “Mikey, will you stop harassing our guest?” He sighs. “Donnie is such a bad influence.”

Usagi looks between the two. While he is a bit surprised by the upfrontness of the Hamato family, he isn’t exactly opposed to it. He clears his throat. “It’s fine, Raph. Uh, where’s Leo?”

“Oh.” Raph looks sad suddenly. “There was a bit of an issue.”

Both Usagi and Mikey perk up, concerned.

Usagi tries to hide the fear that is now rushing through him. “Is he okay?”

“Leo’s fine! It’s Donnie. I’m not really sure what happened, but Leo seems to be handling it fine. The two of them may be unavailable for the rest of the day though.” The oldest turtle smiles sadly at Usagi. “Sorry, were you guys planning on doing something together?”

Usagi is so relieved to hear that Leo is okay, he doesn’t even care that their plans aren’t happening now. “Oh, we were just gonna hang on the rooftops.”

“Oh!” Mikey lunges towards the rabbit, tightly grabbing his arm before loosening his grip a bit. “We can go!” Mikey beams up at him before his smile falters. He lets go of his arm. “Or you don’t have to. Sorry, I can be a bit … much.”

Usagi looks down at the small turtle and laughs before scooping him up in his arms . He weighs very little to the rabbit. “I’d love to go with you, Mikey.” He turns to Raph. “Care to join us?”

Raph chuckles. “Sure.”

Mikey flaps his hands, accidentally hitting Usagi but he doesn’t mind. “Yay! You’re my new favorite!” He whispers. “I prefer you to Leo.”

“Good. I’m better than him.” He whispers back.

The three of them venture to a rooftop of Mikey’s choosing. It’s right by Central Park, so they have a view of all the nature and the people and everything. It’s starting to get dark, so the streetlights light up the faces.

Mikey swings his feet on the ledge, making Raph worry a bit that he may fall off. “We like to make up stories about the people in the park! Like her!” He points to a young lady in a pink rain jacket, wandering around as if she is lost. “She’s new to the city. Came to meet with someone she fell in love with, but can’t find them yet … hope she does soon.”

Usagi smiles at him. “All that from just a glance?”

“You can learn a lot from a glance!” He bounces a bit. “Leo’s the best at this game. You should play it with him sometime.”

“I will.”

“Okay, Raph’s turn!” Raph frantically searches for a person before eventually settling on a man leaning against a pole and dribbling a basketball in place. “He … uh … he’s on the run from the law. Robber, most likely. Probably won’t stay in the city much longer.”

Usagi nods, agreeing with Raph’s assessment. He then scans the park himself. He’s never seen so many people before. It’s odd, observing them when they have no idea he’s there. Hell, they have no idea a creature like him even exists. He sighs. “I’m not very good at this.”

“That’s okay!” Mikey reassures him. “Takes a while to get used to it.”

“Mhm …” Usagi suddenly has a thought. “Hey, about the whole ‘gay feelings’ thing.”

Mikey frowns. “Sorry! Dr. Feelings can get intense. He has nothing on Dr. Delicate Touch, though.”

“Uh …” Usagi decides he will ask about that later. “It’s just … do you … gah, I’m bad at this.”

Raph raises an eyebrow. “What?”

“Nevermind.” The rabbit decides his question is far too embarrassing.

“You want to know if Leo has gay feelings for you.” Raph says, matter of factly.

Usagi blinks. “Uh, yeah?”

Mikey and Raph exchange a look before bursting into laughter. They laugh for a full thirty seconds, unable to speak, while Usagi looks at them wide-eyed. Mikey almost loses his balance, slipping a bit before Usagi catches him.

When the laughter finally dies down, Raph inhales deeply and looks at the rabbit. “Sorry it’s just … god, you guys are perfect for each other. Both so oblivious.”

Usagi ignores the slight insult. “Are you saying …?”

“Of course he likes you!” Mikey exclaims. “Intense swooning.”

“Immense downbadness.” Raph adds.

Usagi stares at the two of them before turning back to look at the park. “Oh.” He says and that's all he can say because anything else he says will sound like ‘oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god’. He’s not used to people liking him. He’s not used to even having any romantic interests. On the streets in the Hidden City, he didn’t meet very many nice people. To him, Leo was a miracle.

Usagi doesn’t realize he’s crying until Mikey’s clinging to his arm and asking him what’s wrong. Raph places a gentle hand on the rabbit’s shoulder, not as touchy but wanting to show some care as well.

“Sorry, it’s just …” Usagi aggressively wipes away his tears and suddenly starts laughing. “I don’t know why I’m crying. I’m really happy, actually.”

“Oh! That’s good!” Mikey smiles. “I thought the idea of Leo liking you brought you to tears.”

“Wouldn’t be the first time.” Raph jokes.

“No, I really like him.” Usagi laughs. “It’s weird. We just met yesterday.”

“Well, Leo has this weird energy.” Raph says. “It’s like … when you meet him, you instantly hate him or love him. There’s no inbetween.”

“I, on the other hand,” Mikey gestures to himself. “Am always lovable.”

“I can tell.” Usagi pinches the young turtle's cheeks, making Mikey giggle.

Raph smiles at his brother before looking down at the park one last time. “Alright, we should head home. It’s getting dark.” He turns to Usagi. “We can walk you back to the restaurant or you could just stay with us.” He says the last option with a bit more cheer, silently hoping Usagi will choose the last one.

Usagi takes the hint, secretly very excited. “I’ll stay the night if it’s cool with everyone.”

“Sleepover!” Mikey pumps his fists in the air. “Do you wanna watch a Jupiter Jim movie? You seem like a Jupiter Jim fan. We have all the movies on DVD! But we can also …” He spends the entire walk to the Lair ranting to Usagi, who nods along and offers a comment occasionally.

Usagi could get used to this family.

🐢🐰

After carrying Donnie to his bed, Leo sits on the floor of his room, thinking aloud.

“An hour.” He whispers. “I don’t check my phone for one hour and …” He grabs his phone from the floor and hurls it at the wall. And something about the way it slams into the wall then lies on the floor, shattered … Leo can’t help but imagine himself being thrown at the wall by the Krang. He inhales sharply, scrambling across the floor until his back presses against the bed. He tries to steady his breathing, but the more he thinks about it the harder it is to control and suddenly he’s thinking that maybe he’s dying.

“Leo?” Usagi peeks into Leo’s room. His heart sinks when the turtle flinches at his voice, eyes filled with fear until he recognizes Usagi. “Hey, it’s me.”

Leo stares at him. “You’re still here.” His voice sounds so small.

“Yeah.” Usagi walks towards him and sits on the floor beside him. He hesitates before eventually wrapping his arms about the turtle. “I’m here.”

Leo keeps eye contact with the rabbit until his eyes start to water and his breath catches in his throat. He digs his head into Usagi’s soft chest and starts to sob, his tears soaking Usagi’s fur. He returns Usagi’s hug, holding onto him like a lifeline. Usagi holds him tighter, not minding the tears or the tight grip.

“You’re okay.” He whispers to Leo. “Everything’s okay.” He rubs the turtle’s shell.

They still like that for a while, Leo’s tears dying down as Usagi whispers gentle words to him. Leo can’t help but think that, despite his awful mental state, this is nice. He likes being held and Usagi is soft, literally and metaphorically. He makes him feel safe. So safe, that he’s slowly growing tired. Leo can barely keep his eyes open, slowly blinking. “Sorry.” He mumbles as he clings to the fur on the rabbit's arm.

“Don’t be, you silly goose.”

Leo squints at him, confused. “You do know I’m a turtle, right?”

Usagi bursts into laughter, shaking the sleepy Leo with the sudden movement. He rubs the turtle’s head. “Really? I didn’t know that.”

Leo’s eyes widen slightly, actually alarmed by Usagi’s apparent lack of observational skills. But he doesn’t say anything about it, figuring they can have a conversation on the topic tomorrow.

“You tired?” Usagi asks.

Leo hums, meaning yes. Somehow Usagi understands the sounds.

“Makes sense.” The rabbit hums back. “Wanna stay here or move up to your bed?”

“I’m comfy here.” Leo digs his head further into Usagi’s fur.

Usagi chuckles. “Alright. Me too.”

So they stay there, Leo falling asleep rather quickly. Usagi plants a gentle kiss on his forehead, quickly before he can think too much about it. Shortly after, he drifts to sleep as well.

🐢🐰

Leo wakes up engulfed in white fur. He’s careful to pry himself away slowly so as to not disturb Usagi’s sleep. When they’re finally separated, he looks at the rabbit. He looks so peaceful, completely still aside from the occasional nose twitch that Leo finds adorable. Leo smiles before planting a kiss on his forehead. He stands up before he can think more about the action.

Leo ventures towards Donnie’s room. The room is completely empty, the sheets on the bed ruffled. Leo heads to his lab next, where he finds his brother hunched over his computer.

“Whatcha up to, D?” Leo hops on the chair next to Donnie.

Donnie doesn’t look at him, focused on several videos up on his screen. “Looking for the dinosaur.” After a couple moments, he finally looks at Leo. “He belongs to Usagi, doesn’t he?”

Leo nods.

“Good. I want him around to observe. It’s truly fascinating. I wonder …” He stops talking, lost in his own world. It’s almost as if he forgets Leo is there.

“So, uh,” Leo clears his throat. “Marenights?”

Donnies whips his head around. He glares at his twin before sighing, “Nefe I’m.” He hums. “You can just ignore what happened yesterday.”

“Absolutely not!” Leo says a bit too loudly, making Donnie flinch. He lowers his voice. “I’m never gonna ignore anything that’s going on with you. Trust me, I’ll keep my ringer on from now on.” He pauses then remembers something. “Actually, can you fix my phone? I I kinda broke it.”

“I don’t even want to know.”

“But, yeah, I could never ignore you, D.”

Donnie squints at him. “Even when you have a hot rabbit boyfriend?”

“Who says he’ll be my boyfriend?” Leo blushes and clears his throat.

“He’s obviously in love with you.” Donnie rolls his eyes, attention back on his computer now. “I don’t understand why, but I can’t deny it.”

“You don’t know …” Leo sighs and rubs his forehead. “Actually, I think he almost accidentally said he loved me yesterday. But that could’ve been a mistake.”

Donnie gapes at him. “I fucking hate gay people.”

“It’s just … I just met him, y’know? What if … what if he thinks I’m weird?”

“You are weird.”

“Thanks, dude.” Leo turns away, actually slightly upset. Truth is, all his charm and overconfidence is to make up for the fact that he really doesn’t like himself.

“Look, Nardo.” Donnie spins around in his chair to face Leo. When Leo doesn’t look his way, he grabs his shoulder and turns him around with great force. “You’re not normal. You stopped an alien invasion at 16 years old. You have mystic magic.” He squeezes Leo’s shoulder a bit harder. “You’re a Hamato. You’re weird, so what? I’m sure Usagi is just as weird.”

Leo smiles at his twin. “That was surprisingly sweet.”

“Don’t mention it. Actually, if you mention this to anyone, I will kill you.”

“Love you too! Bye!” Leo practically sprints out of the lab, desperate to speak to Usagi. It isn’t until he is face to face with the tired rabbit that he realizes he has no idea what the hell he’s going to say exactly.

“Hey.” Usagi smiles softly as he slowly lifts himself up from the ground, shaking slightly.

Leo rushes to help steady him. “Hey.”

Once Usagi is up and no longer shaking, neither one of them lets go of the other’s hand. They both laugh nervously as they look at each other.

“Sorry about last night.” Leo says.

“Oh, don’t worry. It was a blessing in disguise. I got to spend time with Mikey and Raph.”

“Really? I hope Mikey wasn’t too … Mikey.”

“He’s sweet.” Usagi smiles, remembering the events of last night. “We went to the rooftop by Central Park and we played the weird … making up stories about strangers game.”

“Oh.” That’s where Leo had wanted to take Usagi last night. That’s what he had wanted to do with him. “That’s nice.”

“Mhm! We should go today, the two of us.” Usagi clears his throat and lets go of Leo’s hand. “Anyways, uh … feeling better?”

“Oh, yeah! Sorry. It’s like … Donnie and I have this weird twin thing where if one of us freaks out, the other does.” Leo laughs. “Yeah, that’s it.”

“Alright.” Usagi doesn’t question him further. He figures he’ll learn more about that side of Leo as they spend more time together, just like he plans to let Leo know more about his own past over time. “Last night, Mikey mentioned making something special for breakfast. Care to lead me to the kitchen?”

“Why, of course, young gentleman.” Leo wiggles a pair of imaginary eyebrows, making Usagi laugh. The two of them laugh the whole way to the kitchen.

“What are you two lovebirds laughing about?” Mikey says while preparing something in a pan.

Leo glares at him while Usagi simply smiles.

“I’m laughing at how stupid Leo is, obviously.” Usagi sits at the table.

Leo sits right beside him. “Uh, ouch.”

Usagi sticks his tongue out at him and Leo returns the flavor.

Mikey’s moves whatever he’s cooking off the pan and onto a plate. He starts decorating it with chocolate syrup, pausing every couple seconds to admire his handiwork. “Usagi, do you like blueberries?”

“Mhm!”

“Perfect!” Mikey grabs two blueberries and places them on the dish. He takes the plate and sets it before Usagi. “Viola!”

On the plate is a pancake in the shape of a rabbit face. The details of the face are drawn with chocolate syrup and the eyes are blueberries.

Usagi beams. “This is adorable, Mikey!”

“Thank you!” The youngest turtle bounces up and down before placing his head on the table. “I spent so long getting the shape right.”

“That’s sweet and all, but what about me?” Leo pouts. “I never get special pancakes.”

“I like Usagi more!” Mikey says before turning on his heels and heading back to the stove. “I’ll get started on your pancakes.”

Leo turns to Usagi. “You’ve turned my family against me.”

“I’m just so loveable.” Usagi smirks before cutting a piece of pancake and shoving it into Leo’s mouth. “There.”

Leo’s mouth is too full to complain and he can’t even be mad anymore because Mikey makes the best pancakes ever. He continues to fake sadness as he chews.

“So,” Usagi says between bites. “Mikey, since we didn’t end up watching a movie last night, how about I stay today and we can have a bit of a marathon?”

“Omigosh, yay!” Mikey smiles as he sets down both his and Leo’s plate. “I’m so excited!”

“Alright, we can do that as soon as Leo and I get back.”

“Hm?” Leo rushes to swallow his food. “Uh, where are we going?”

“I said I wanted to go to the rooftop with you, remember?”

“Today?”

“Yup.” Usagi can’t help but laugh, plotting an expert plan he must keep to himself. “It’s important.”

Leo glares at him, suspicious, but eventually shrugs. “Alright, we’ll go after we eat.”

They try to hide it, but both of them rush to finish their food. Mikey notices this, chuckling to himself as he watches them. He’s already brainstorming ideas for the movie marathon.

“You ready?” Leo says after they're both done, already readying his sword.

“Yup.” Usagi pushes his plate to Mikey and smiles. “Thanks again for the breakfast, lil’ dude!”

Mikey lunges across the table and pulls Usagi into an extraordinarily tight hug. It kinda blows the wind out of Usagi, but he leans into it once the shock has passed.

After a while, the young turtle reluctantly pulls away. “Okay, see you later!”

“Bye!” Usagi gives him a little wave before turning back to an inpatient Leo. “Now we can go.”

Leo swings his sword with a little more flair than usual, attempting to impress Usagi. The rabbit simply rolls his eyes as he steps through the portal and onto the same building from last night. He inhales deeply as he takes a seat on the edge, patting the spot beside him for Leo to sit beside him. When the turtle does, Usagi rests his head on his shoulder and inhales.

“You’re touchy.” Leo says softly.

Usagi squints and looks up at him. “You cried in my arms last night and fell asleep holding me.”

“Fair.”

They both stare down at the park in silence. Usagi notes how different it looks in the complete light. There are more people, lots of happy kids running around and teens lounging about. Usagi scans the crowd, searching for the perfect specimen. He’s so focused he doesn’t notice Leo staring at him, absolutely smitten by his intense concentrated expression.

“Oh! Oh!” Usagi bursts out, startling Leo a bit. He lowers his volume. “Sorry. Uh … okay, see that dude over there?” He eagerly points to a teenage boy on a bench near a fountain. He has pale skin and white hair in a ponytail that reaches his shoulder. He’s just sitting there, fiddling with his fingers and not looking in any particular direction. Usagi smiles. Perfect. “He was lonely for a very long time. It’s a long story but it’s like he … was so lonely he didn’t realize it anymore. He didn’t care anymore, y’know?”

Leo looks down at Usagi, who is entirely focused on the stranger although he is talking to Leo. Usually, he would interrupt someone who is talking for this long, but all he could do was listen.

“He didn’t care,” Usagi continues. “Until someone came along who made him feel not so lonely anymore. And it all happened so fast like a flash of light. A blue flash of light.” He looks at Leo really quickly before looking back down and clearing his throat. “And this light, it brought him this warmth. No, he brought him that warmth.” Usagi doesn’t realize he’s mirroring the fiddling of the fingers that the stranger is doing until Leo gently places his hands on top of the rabbit’s. Usagi stops the movement and chuckles nervously. “So this stranger is waiting on that bench. And, sure, he’s only been waiting on this person for a couple days, but he’s been waiting on this feeling for a very long time.” Usagi smiles and looks up at Leo again, who wears a blank expression and is still staring down.

Leo is trying not to freak out, so he’s decided not to show anything at all. Because if he does he may jump into the air and cry from joy and sweep Usagi up in his arms, so he just stares down and finally sighs after a while. “My turn?”

Usagi blinks, terrified. “… Yeah.”

“Okay.” Leo shifts slightly. He points to another teenager, this one with brown skin and long blond hair. He wears a blue hoodie. “He, uh …” Suddenly he’s really bad at this game. “Oh, fuck it. He also felt a warm light or whatever, he really likes the stranger on the bench and …” Leo turns around to face the rabbit who is a bit taken back by the sudden shift. “He wants to kiss him. Can he do that?”

“I think he’d like that.”

“Cool.”

And Leo doesn’t even get a chance to move before Usagi is moving his head up and their lips collide messily. They both close their eyes, zoning in on the other’s touch. When they lose their breath and pull away, it’s as if they are breathing for the first time. They smile at each other. Leo starts to lean in again before he hears a scoff behind them.

“Ew!” Donnie rolls his eyes as he approaches the two teens. There’s a purple cage that he shifts in his hands every couple seconds. “Gross.”

Usagi blushes wildly and scoots away from Leo, trying his best not to make eye contact with either turtle.

“D!” Leo’s voice cracks. “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to become more homophobic somehow” He shoves himself between the two, sitting down cross-legged. He sets the cage on top of his lap, the door facing Usagi. “Sorry to interrupt, but also not sorry because I-“ There’s a rattling in the cage that nearly knocks it out of Donnie’s hand. Leo and Usagi both jump.

Usagi glares at it. “I hope whatever is in there is legal.”

“I’m not sure.” Donnie ponders it. “You tell me.”

“What?” Something clicks in Usagi’s head. “Is that …?” A smile grows on the rabbit’s face.

Donnie returns the smile before carefully unlocking the cage. Inside, Spot is curled in on himself and trembling. When he feels the cold air on his body, he slowly lifts his head and looks around. When he and Usagi lock eyes, Spot immediately jumps out of the cage and into the rabbit’s expectant arms. Usagi laughs as he clings onto the dinosaur, planting a kiss on his small head. He cries as he whispers sweet words to Spot. “I missed you.”

Leo elbows Donnie’s side. “That was sweet.”

“I can be sweet sometimes.” He smiles softly. “Don’t get used to it.”

Suddenly, Usagi lunges towards Donnie and wraps him in a tight hug. The turtle grunts on impact, but after a while simply sighs. He pats Usagi on the head, then does the same to the dinosaur squished between them.

Once Usagi releases him, Donnie clears his throat. “I designed the cage myself. It’s state of the art. Made from titanium. I’m not sure of the creatures strength level, but it should certainly hold him.” He prepares to stand up. “I’ll leave you to your gay activities.”

“No!” Usagi grabs his arm and pulls him back down, quite aggressively. “Hang out with us for a bit.”

Donnie glares at him then turns his head to Leo who looks at him with soft eyes. After a while, he sighs. “Fine.” He looks down at the park. “You’re playing the stalking game?”

Leo punches him. “It’s not stalking.”

“Yeah, and purple isn’t my favorite color. He says sarcastically.”

Usagi laughs. “It’s just watching strangers.” He looks at Leo. “It can be a beautiful thing sometimes.”

So the three of them sit there, admiring the people of New York. It’s a beautiful site.