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You don’t know why in all the time you’ve spent in New York, you’ve never been up on a rooftop. The view was amazing.
There were a couple of reasons as to why. Your hatred of high places, for one. With a strong enough breeze, you could go flying off your roof and become intimately familiar with the pavement below. Sometimes your neighbors would set up lawn chairs and shoot the shit, which was fine enough. You’ve just never been comfortable enough to want to join them. Lastly, it was a little difficult to skate on. The crowded atmosphere and uneven terrain made it the last place you would want to find yourself on a nice evening such as this.
But, the rooftop of your building had one upside: it was the place you got to see Michelangelo.
You clicked your heels together as you sat at an empty folding chair leftover from one of your upstairs neighbors. He wouldn’t show up for at least another 30 minutes, but you couldn’t help but jump the gun a bit and wait on the roof anyway. You’ve been keeping yourself busy, drawing random sketches onto your iPad.
Mikey and you had been friends for a while, but you officially started dating about a year ago. Not much has changed between you two, even after the Kraang invasion.
He was his same upbeat, eclectic self. But Mikey was also a little more confident. He carried himself differently, with a knowledge and experience you couldn’t even begin to relate to. You were a human, he was basically a superhero.
You bite at the tip of your drawing pen. Why was it whenever you started thinking about him and his brothers, you got inexplicably frustrated.
Was it because Raph, Donnie, and Leo still didn’t know you two were dating?
No, not really. You and Mikey weren’t really concerned with labels. You two were content to continue hanging out like you always had, just with a little extra…intimacy.
Maybe it was the fact that you had to hang out in precarious places such as your rooftop. Why couldn’t you just go to your apartment, or the lair?
“No, that’s not it.” You grumble to yourself, tapping the pen against your cheek.
“What’s not it?”
Mikey’s head appeared right above yours. He had just landed on the top of the wooden overhang you sat under, hanging like a spider.
Smiling, you sit up a little more straight to give his snout a peck.
“This…caricature. I just can’t capture his likeness. It’s missing something.”
Mikey blushed, dropping from his perch to sit next to you. “Allow me to offer you my artistic perspective!”
You happily oblige and show him your screen. Thinking about your fellow tenants had made you unintentionally start to draw little doodles that looked like them. You couldn’t help wanting to draw the people you knew. Your weird, human neighbors were quite the characters. Almost a little more weird than the turtles, in your opinion.
“Oh, I know this guy. Is this the one that knocked at your door at 3 AM asking for a DVD?”
Mikey pinched to zoom in on your sketch. You don’t know whether your drawing was that accurate or if he was just great with faces. Either way, you can’t help but smile even more.
“How did you know?” You snuggle closer to Mikey, leaning in. “He insisted that I had borrowed his copy of Cats. And I was like, ‘Dale, I already own it on Blu-ray. Why in the world would I steal your DVD?’”
Mikey fell into your lap in hysterics. “NYAHAHA—! You didn’t!”
You weren’t lying about the interaction having happened, but maybe you embellished the part at the end. You just loved making Mikey laugh.
“I did!” You beam.
“Your neighbors are so weird, even for me. And the only neighbors I have are the sewer gators.”
You set your iPad down on the patio, scooching Mikey to lie fully in your lap.
“Her name is Leatherhead and she’s lovely. I met her family once, on the way to the lair.”
Ignoring your sly tone, Mikey curled up into you like a lap cat. He was practically purring from how happy he was to finally be in your arms. It’s only been a couple of days since he’s had the opportunity to see you like this, and he was absolutely touch-starved.
“I missed you,” he sighs. “Patrol has been intense lately.”
His tired smile told you that he’d rather not get into it right now. You hum, petting the side of his head.
“I missed you too.”
Talking about his brothers wasn’t necessarily a taboo topic, but right now was the time for Mikey to relax, to unwind. You had plenty of stress in your own life too. Maybe it wasn’t as important as keeping the city safe, but it was tiresome to you nonetheless.
You both just wanted to forget about everything else, just be together. That was what these rooftop hangouts were for. And if that was good enough for Mikey, it was good enough for you.
But your smile faltered, if only for a moment.
Mikey’s eyes were closed as he continued to relish your head pets, unaware of your subtle shift in mood.
“Tell me more about your neighbors.” Turning his head, he speaks softly into your hand. “I love hearing about the people you live with. They’re interesting.”
“Well, this town is kinda ‘interesting people’ central.” You shrug.
“Yeah, I know. Are humans in other places like the ones here?”
Dragging your fingers along his textured skin, you think about it. You hadn’t really gotten around much, but you figured that NYC was a little unique compared to other major cities.
Your lips ease back into a lazy smile.
“Sort of. This place is sort of a big Melting Pot, y’know? It doesn’t really matter where you come from, everyone ends up wherever they are…for whatever reason.”
Mikey looks up at your face, his expression dripping with curiosity.
“What’s that mean?” He smirks.
“It means that people are weird. This place has a lot of people. Therefore, New York is just about the weirdest place there is!”
You two laugh, basking in each other's presence. After looking down at Mikey, you feel a little more normal. Work, life, all of that didn’t really matter anymore. Or at least, it shouldn’t.
“My neighbor’s aren’t all that interesting, Mikey. They’re just your run-of-the-mill folks, day drinking and sitting on the stoop.”
“Woah…” He gasps, sitting up. “Day drinking?”
Internally, you chide yourself. “I wasn’t supposed to say that.”
“Don’t worry, your secrets are safe with me!” He smiles, zipping his lips shut.
“I shouldn’t gossip…”
You roll your eyes a bit before they land on Mike. His eager, expectant expression was just too cute. Who could say no to a face like that?
Suddenly, you’re filled with bubbly energy.
“Okay, okay! Liz told me that Bill said that Debbie’s grandma was apparently—“
You whip your head around, making sure the coast is clear. You never knew who might be listening in, your neighbors were terribly nosy.
“She snuck Hennessy into the apartment meeting. Last Sunday, when we got together with the building manager, they had coffee and stuff…”
Mikey quickly scrambles over to grab a free chair before sitting directly in front of you. Enraptured, he places his head on his hands.
“And she added a little extra somethin’ into her mug? How scandalous!” He wiggles his eye ridge, fully getting into the story.
You launch forward and gesture wildly with your hands. “No, that’s the thing! She put the booze…in the coffee pot.”
Mikey’s smile dropped.
“You don’t mean—“
Grimly, you nod your head.
“I mean a whole room of people, shnackered at 10 AM. On God’s day.” You chortle.
He covers his mouth in genuine shock. You chuckle, looking at his wide-eyed expression.
“And I know that Liz was the one who ratted her out, the bitch. She of all people would know what Hennessy tastes like, I saw her drink 5 whole cups with my own eyes!”
Mikey moves his hands away, his voice hushed. “She sounds like a bitch.”
You kick your legs up and recline farther in your chair. “You don’t know the half of it.”
Liz was your next door neighbor. She always had a knack for being right outside your door whenever you stepped out to go to work. You left early everyday just to accommodate for the inevitable one-sided conversation. She was old, and very lonely, so you didn’t mind her chatting your ear off.
But she was also very bitter. Even more so after the Kraang invasion.
“I swear, I keep seeing those…frog men. They flip around my windows at all hours of the night, whooping and hollering up a storm! Who do those punks think they are?”
You’ve seen a lot of different reactions from people after the turtles officially became public knowledge. Usually, it was just casual disinterest or disdain from the more conservative crowd. Old people, cops, etcetera.
But for some reason, the people you lived with just happened to be either really old or in law enforcement. They hated all mutants, and they didn’t have any problem letting you know about it.
You nearly get lost in your own thoughts before Mikey nudges your knee.
“I think she’s the one who threw a flower pot at my head that one time.” He chuckles, rubbing the back of his noggin.
Sighing, you lightly knock his leg with your foot. “Yeah, that’s Liz. If rent wasn’t so good here, I’d move out in a second.”
“Aw, they’re not so bad!” Mikey shoots a toothy smile at you. “It’s not the worst thing someone’s thrown at me.”
You meet his grin with a small frown.
“How do you do it?”
Mikey cocks his head. “Is that a rhetorical question?”
“Ugh, no? Yes?” You lean back and stare up into the sky. It was a clear day, not a cloud in sight.
“You’d think people would be a little more thankful to the guys who saved their asses from alien invaders.”
You seethed, thinking about all the nasty side comments and quiet whisperings you’ve overheard in your hallways.
“Hey, don’t get angry on my account.” Mikey reaches out and gives you a good-natured pat on the leg. “My family’s used to people wanting to kill us all the time, so a flower pot is actually a nice change of pace.”
“I guess so.”
Then, you realize it.
This was why you were so stressed out. Whenever you think about the turtles, you can’t help but associate them with all the negative energy you’ve been surrounded in at home. You thought you had thicker skin, but you feel your heart start to sink.
“You know, it’s funny.”
Mikey sighs, musing to himself.
“Sometimes I think about how weird it’s been lately. Splinter always told us it was important for us to not be seen, to stick to the shadows. It was because of the ninja thing, mostly. But I know he was trying to keep us...”
He picks nervously at his palm, tracing the lines of his hand.
“Safe?” You ask.
“Sheltered.”
There was a sadness creeping into his voice. You hated the sound. It was just too bittersweet for you to handle. You cautiously look back to Mikey, waiting for him to finish.
“But, then there was April. And Casey, later on. I thought there might actually be a chance for us to make it out in the human world. The whole yokai/mutant thing with Draxum was…well, a whole thing.”
Mikey briefly looked back up to make sure he wasn’t boring you too much. Not that he didn’t like to talk with you about stuff like this, it was just a little hard.
When you give his hand an encouraging squeeze, he sighs.
“But, I knew we kinda wouldn’t have a choice to stay in the shadows anymore. After the Kraang, that is. Leo told us we wouldn’t exactly be getting the red carpet treatment.”
“Humans are stupid.” You huff.
“You’re a human, and I don’t think you’re stupid at all.”
Mikey squeezed your hand back, a sad smile forming on his face.
It wasn’t like he needed the entirety of New York to accept him and his brothers. With April, Casey, and especially you, he had all the human approval that he could ever want. He searched your face, and he knew that you were starting to slip.
You try to swallow down the lump in your throat before speaking up.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up all this.” You run your thumb along the edge of Mikey’s.
Mikey sits up, puffing out his chest. “That’s enough. I will not have you getting sad because of me!”
Suddenly, he stands up, bringing you along with him.
“I’m not sad, I’m mad!” You scoff, rubbing your nose on your sleeve. “I ought to throw ceramic vases at Liz, see how she likes it.”
Tutting you, Mikey leads you out into the middle of the roof. There was a concrete slab next to the door that led back into the building, where you had placed your backpack earlier. You watch as Mikey sneaks around, dipping behind your back, to dig through your bag.
“You know a good way to get rid of all that anger?” Mikey whispers, rising up.
“What are you scheming back there?” You cross your arms and spin around. “Stop messing with my—“
When you turn around, you see Mikey holding up your trusty pair of skates right up to your face. He held them by the shoelaces, a cheeky grin peeking around them.
“Skate the hate away, baby!”
“That’s a beautiful thought,” you smirk. “But I couldn’t.”
“Oh, then let me help you.”
You gasp, feeling Mikey drag you over to your chair to push you back into it. Once you fall, he moves down to pull off your sneakers and lace up your skates.
Blushing, you watch him lovingly guide your feet in. He sticks his tongue out as he ties little bunny-ear knots.
“Mikey…!” You giggle, his fingers tickling your ankle. “This is too much.”
Whenever you started to become sad, you could always count on him to lift your spirits back up. You tried to stay as endlessly positive and go-with-the-flow as Mikey, but it was difficult sometimes. The inner optimist in you was finding it more and more hard to navigate the nihilistic world you found yourselves in.
“There! Now c’mon.” He smiles.
Mikey lifts you back up, pulling you to glide over to the concrete by the door.
You can’t help the goofy smile that creeps in when he spins you around. The flat surface was just big enough for you to skate a couple of inches away from him.
Your shoulders slump, all at once feeling happy again.
“What did I do to deserve you?” You fold your hands behind your back and circle Mikey.
Chuckling, he tries following your face as it spins around him.
“Nothing. You were just in the right place at the right time.”
He stood there idly watching you elegantly sail past him. It was fun constantly making him have to twist around to keep eye contact with you, and you feel laughter begin to bubble up.
You snatch his hand, forcing him into an awkward dance with you.
“Care to join me?”
You grin from ear to ear, placing a hand upon the small of his back. Or rather, his shell.
Surprisingly, Mikey is caught off guard by your bold move. You watch with glee as his face flushes a bright pink. He stutters, a little bashful at being led around by you instead of the other way around.
“I g-guess I don’t have a choice?”
You pull him closer, pressing up against his plastron. “Nope!”
The two of you spin around in lazy circles for a while. The blazing sunset on the horizon brought a new feeling of warmth and comfort, a heavenly glow lighting up your eyes. The entire city looked like it was bathed in orange, Mikey’s signature color.
It was a good look for New York.
“Wow…” You sigh, marveling at the beautiful world around you.
“I know.”
Mikey shifts a bit, managing to stand an inch or two higher than he usually is. You were both about the same height, at least that was what you kept insisting to him. But he wanted to look down at you for once. He wanted to hold you like you held him.
“You make me feel accepted, you know.”
You blink against the light of the sun before looking back at Mikey.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. You just let me be me. That’s all I need. You make me feel all…sparkly.”
You bite your lower lip, holding back a chuckle.
“Sparkly, huh? That’s a unique adjective.”
That was the best way Mikey could describe it. You and him had so much in common, mostly in terms of your hobbies and your personalities. But there was just something about being around you so much that showed him how different you were. In a good way, obviously.
You were human, he was a mutant. There was the ninja-ing as well. You both had wildly different life experiences.
Slotting your head between his neck and his shoulder, he hugs you tightly.
“What about you?”
His warm breath makes you shudder, practically melting into his hold.
“You make me feel…”
You move your skate to engage the rubber stopper. The world was seriously starting to spin.
“Shiny.”
“Hey, are you copying me?”
Playfully scoffing, Mikey picks you right off of your feet and spins you around again. You laugh into each other's embrace, and you hold on for dear life as he pins you securely to his chest.
“It’s true! You make me feel all shiny and new.”
For a second, you feel your thoughts wander back to your earlier conversation. You don’t like having to shift into serious mode, but you needed to say just one more thing. Mikey moves away to get a better look at your face.
“I know it’s not easy. Having to save people when they don’t even—“
“No, it’s not. But when I think about all the people who do care, who do understand me…”
Mikey smiles, tipping your chin up slightly to look at him. He always wanted to do that to you.
“It’s easy. It gets easier everyday. All I have to do is have you right here.”
Then, your heart flutters in your chest. You didn’t notice it before, but Mikey stood a little taller than you now. You don’t know if he had a growth spurt or something, but there he was. Looking at you, his eyes sparkling in the sunset, you knew there was a lot more to Mikey than anyone thought.
Even you.
“I love rooftops,” you sigh, moving up to brush your lips against his cheek.
Angling his head around, he leans into you.
“I love rooftops too.”