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“How the hell is it that you are somehow injured to the point of being near death yet again?! ” You snapped at the turtle that had perched on your fire escape.
Raph flushed, looking mildly embarrassed somehow despite his unwavering grimace of pain.
You sighed and opened the door, slinging his arm over your shoulder to lug him to the couch.
“Sorry.” He grunted through his wince as you set him down as gently as you could. “I can explain-”
You smiled ruefully. “No, no…lemme guess. Ya got mad- probably at Leo, though it could also be Mikey- and stormed off to go fight crime on your own. And now that you’ve sprained your ankle and busted your lip, you’ve come to me so that you don’t have to return home with your tail between your legs.”
He looked surprised, raising his brow ridge at the amount of accuracy.
“Dude you did this like…just last month.” You sighed, and he mouthed ‘oh’, reaffirmed that you were indeed not a stalker.
“Well…you’re the medic.” He shrugged, smiling weakly.
You scoffed. “Wrong. Donnie is.”
“Donnie once strapped me to a table and threatened to saw my plastron open.” Raph scowled. “And I don’t care that he was joking- I don’t trust him with medic privilege anymore.”
“But Don knows more than I do about how to fix you up.” You said, grabbing the first aid kit.
“Well…I like you better.” Raph grumbled, crossing his arms.
You tried to resist smiling at that. “Flattery will get you nowhere.” You lied.
Raph rolled his eyes. “It’s not…I’m not trying to….whatever, just do your thing, would ya?”
You snorted. “Sure, King Raphael .”
“Please?”
He added, and you sighed.
“Okay, okay. Fine. Just stop getting hurt, would ya?”
“Well…it’s sorta in the whole ‘ninja vigilante’ job description, genius.”
You smiled ruefully, and began to wrap his ankle. “Yeah, I know. Maybe I just don’t like seeing you injured. But still…I’m glad you trust me to patch you up, dork.”
He yawned and punched you lightly on the shoulder. “Wouldn’t trust anyone more.”
You rolled your eyes and handed him some ibuprofen pills before sitting on the couch next to him.
“Wanna watch a movie while you procrastinate on telling your brothers that I had to save your shell again?”
“Yeah,” He murmured sleepily, swallowing the pain meds.
“Hm. ‘Kay, Twilight it is.” You grinned.
Had Raph been even slightly more alert, he probably would have protested, but at this point, the adrenaline of the night had caught up with him. So instead of protesting, he rested his head on your shoulder and watched the movie about glittery vampires.
You smiled and wrapped a soft blanket around his shoulders. Maybe it was sorta annoying and stressful how often Raph got injured, but you had to admit, it was pretty nice hanging out with him like this. And it was also sorta nice to know he trusted you to take care of him.
He yawned and put an arm around you. “Hey (Y/N)?”
“Yeah Rafa?”
“Thanks for doing this for me. It…well, it really does…y’know, mean a lot to me and stuff.” He whispered before fading into sleep.
You smiled and hugged him back.
***
“Hey (Y/N), is it normal to have the world sorta…sorta spinning n’ stuff?” Said Mikey.
You stared at him wide eyed.
“Angelo, buddy, pal, you just got thrown into a fucking wall!” You screeched.
“So that’s like…noooot normal?” Mikey said slowly.
“ Ai ya. You are so lucky that Raph and Leo don’t need my backup right now.” You muttered, more to yourself than to him as you dragged the injured Michelangelo off the battlefield.
You’d come along today to kick Foot Ninja butt and smash robots, not treat concussions. But apparently Raph wasn’t the only one under the impression that you were suddenly team medic. God, where was Don when you needed him?!
“(Y/N)...my head hurts.” Mikey whispered, clutching it in his hands, before seeming to notice his change in location. “I-I mean, I’m totally mondo, bro! Lemme go back to fighting! I can’t let my bros down (Y/N), seriously-”
“Shut up Mikey, you probably have a concussion-”
“S’okay, I can still fight good! I’ve done it before, seriously-”
“Ah, so you’re delusional too…” You said, pretending to write it down.
“(Y/N), really man-”
You sighed and dropped the act, as your nonchalant attitude clearly wasn’t working. “Mikester, you fight great. But your brothers are fine. It’s just a few Footbots, nothing they haven’t handled before, and besides, you took out a heck of a lot of them before you got wall-thrown. You really even their odds! But now you're injured, and the best thing you can do for your brothers is take a break!” You exclaimed, propping him up against a wall a block away from the fight.
He frowned, brow ridges knit together. “You sure- oohhh did someone just stab my eyes with a glowing sword bro…?”
“Nah man, that’s just the streetlight.” You said gently, unpacking the first-aid kit that you were lucky to have had the foresight to bring along, and mentally ran through the concussion tests you knew.
You tapped Mikey’s hand and ankle at the same time. “Okay. Where am I touching you?” You said.
“Uhhh…my hand.” He mumbled out.
“Nothing on the ankle?”
“Nah…”
Shit, okay, he’d failed that test…
You swallowed and read the instructions for another one off your phone.
‘1. Tap the bridge of the patient's nose.
- They will begin to blink, but should stop after 2-3 blinks.
- After more than 3 blinks the subject is considered concussed.’ said the article.
You tapped his snout gently, and he blinked in shock.
“Ow!”
“Sorry.”
One blink, two, three, four, five- uh oh.
“Okay…you’re officially concussed, Mikey!” You said weakly.
“Ohhh…that’s not good, is it, bro?” He moaned.
“No... Look, I’ve got this bag of ice, I’m gonna hold it onto your head, okay?” You said, making sure to speak as calmly and clearly as you could manage.
He nodded, before groaning in pain at the movement. You eased the ice onto his forehead as gently as you could manage, and grabbed some pain meds out of your first aid kit.
“Here, swallow these.”
He complied.
“Woah, what’s going on here?!” Said a voice from behind you.
“Don!” You grinned, spinning around to see the familiar turtle. He was by your side in an instant, studying Mikey himself.
“He’s got a concussion.” You sighed.
“Ooh, that’s…not ideal.” Don winced. “Look, I’ve gotta grab the Shellraiser- I’ll pick you up in a minute, Mikey. In the meantime, stay with the medic and don’t do anything stupid.”
“I’m not the medic-” You argued.
“Aren’t you?” Don frowned, pointing to your first aid kit.
“Well even if I was -which I’m not- I have a name, dude.” You protested, but he had already darted off to grab the car. You sighed and mumbled something about those ‘dang teenagers’ as if you weren’t also one.
“S’okay (Y/N), I believe in ya! You can be medic if you set your mind to it…”Mikey grinned loopily.
You facepalmed. “No, that’s not what I- augh. Whatever. Sure, Mikey.” You sighed.
“Anytime, dude.” He said, giving you a weak thumbs-up.
***
“Is he okay?” You said, frowning as Mikey lay passed out on the cot in Don’s lab.
“He’ll be fine. He was lucky to have you there though, it would’ve been way worse if he’d tried to go back to fighting the way you said he wanted to.” Don shrugged, smiling. “So, good job, Team Medic!”
You frowned. “Whoa whoa woah, no. Donnie, you’re the team medic.”
Don shook his head. “No, I’m Team Scientist. I only have an arbitrary understanding of medical stuff- I’m more of a ‘mechanics’ guy. And occasionally chemistry, nowadays, but y’know.”
“So you think I - Me, an untrained ametuer- would be a better medic than you, a full fledged genius scientist?!” You said indignantly.
“Well…yeah, you have basic first aid training, which is more than even I have, and you’re great under pressure- Um…do you not want to be?” He stammered awkwardly. “See I just figured …the more the merrier, right? But if you don’t want to, obviously we don’t have to do that…it’d just be nice to have someone else, I guess…” He continued, fiddling with his duffle bag strap anxiously.
You sighed, running through the mental pros and cons list.
On the one hand…It would mean more safety for the boys, finally getting to use your medical training, and a bit of pressure off of Donnie- who already shouldered the huge burden that came with the title of ‘Scientist/Engineer/Argument Breaker-Upper/Mechanic/Chemist/Ninja’.
But on the other hand, it was a huge responsibility. What if one of them got injured so badly that you couldn’t help? What if you were at school or work or on vacation or something, what would they do then?
Well…then again, Donnie was still there and able to help. And plus…you’d be the medic, not the doctor. You weren’t sure you could handle long term stuff, but if you were just the first aid… well actually, that didn’t seem too bad. After all, you were already Raph’s personal human first aid kit, and that was only mildly stressful, so maybe doing the same for the other brothers wouldn’t be too terrible?
“Well- I mean, I guess you have a point, what with how often you guys are injured…” You said, considering it. “It’s a huge responsibility, but I guess so long as I have you as backup, Dee…”
Don blinked. “Wait…so you’ll do it?” He said.
Eh…sure why not.
“You know what? …Yeah, I guess so.” You said finally. “But only if you promise you’ll help me out, genius.” You decided, holding out our hand to shake on it.
He grinned and shook it weakly. “Thanks so much, (Y/N). You have no idea how helpful this is.” He said, relieved.
You smiled despite yourself. “Hey, wouldn’t want the world’s best scientist to deal with even more shit than he has to, right?” You said, only half joking.
He blushed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Well best is a strong word...”
You chuckled at his reaction. “Well, you’re certainly the best I know, Don. I’m honored that you trust me with something like this, seriously.”
He smiled, suddenly shy. “Hey, thanks for agreeing to it. This is super helpful- and you’re the best candidate by far.”
“Gasp, better than Casey?” You said in mock surprise.
He chuckled. “ Way better than Casey.”
“You know, one time I stubbed my toe, and his go-to instinct was to chuck a hockey puck at it to, quote, ‘get the blood flowing’. So I guess you’re right there.” You mused.
“Dude! I WAS HELPING!” Yelled Casey, summoned by the sound of shit being talked about him.
“We’ve been over this Case’- YOU INJURED ME MORE! ” You yelled back, and Don doubled over laughing.
“Oh yes, I’m glad my suffering amuses you.” You said, falling against the wall dramatically.
“S-sorry-” Don wheezed as he leaned on his staff to straighten his posture, very obviously not sorry.
“Y’know what?! It totally does amuse me!” Casey sassed, tossing his hair just as dramatically.
“You guys are so mean. ” You said, faking a voice crack as you pretended to wipe away tears.
***
“Hey (Y/N)? I’m sorry I ruined your chances to fight.” Said Mikey a while later.
You looked up from your math homework. “You’re awake?” You said, surprised. Don had estimated that it would be another hour or so before he regained consciousness.
“Uh…apparently. How long was I out?” He mumbled.
“Just a few hours, dude. How’s the head?”
“...Hurts.” He said, cringing. “Aw, man.”
“D’you want me to dim the lights a bit?” You offered. The lab’s lights were already dimmer than usual, but you did have Donnie’s extremely bright desk lamp on for your homework.
“Maybe?” Mikey grunted. “Is everyone okay?”
You complied and turned off the desk lamp, leaving the room shadow-y but not fully dark.
“Yeah, everyone’s fine, Mike’.” You nodded. “You’re the only one that got injured, and that’s just ‘cause one of Shredder’s goons threw your head into a wall.”
“Okay, lame! What a buzzkill.” Mikey whined. “Thanks for patching me up.”
“No problem!” You said firmly.
“It kinda was though, ‘cause I messed up your chance to fight…isn’t that why you were so angry about having to treat me?” Mikey mumbled, looking away.
You cringed, remembering how you had indeed complained. “Aw, Angelo- I…I didn’t mean it like that. That was the stress talking more than anything else, and besides- that’s how I act around Raph, y’know? All like…sarcastic and begrudging because he alway gets hurt for dumbass reasons. I guess I kinda forgot that you’re…not Raph, you know what I mean?” You shrugged, trying to ignore the burning wave of regret and embarrassment that was washing over you.
“Kinda?” Mikey said, still not meeting your eyes. “So does that mean you’re not…mad at me?”
“Of course not.” You said, scooting your chair up next to his cot. “You didn’t do anything wrong, dude, how could I ever be mad at you? Ya did good today, Mikey, you know that?”
“You think so?” He smiled, looking up at you- almost shyly, as if he didn’t believe it….you made a mental note to compliment him more often.
“I know so, genius.” You grinned, punching him lightly in the shoulder.
“Hey! Hitting the sick dude? Not cool brah!” He grinned, punching you back.
“Oh hey- we ordered pizza a bit ago! You feelin’ up for a slice?” You suggested, remembering how Leo had set some aside for whenever Mikey woke up.
“Uh no duh?! Of course I want pizza! Where is it?!”
You laughed, standing up. “Okay, I’ll go get it for ya, dude. Good job today bro.”
“Ditto, mondo-medic!”
“Oh boy, a new nickname. How tubular .” You grunted, smiling good naturedly before you ducked out of the lab.
***
Now you were used to Raphael showing up on your fire escape. But tonight, there was a turtle on your fire escape who not only was not Raphael, but was also one of the least likely people to ever show up injured, ever.
He rapped on the window. “Hey, (Y/N)!”
“ Leo? What the hell are you doing here?” You shoved the door to the fire escape open, and let him in.
“Thanks.” He rasped, limping into the living room. “Sorry to bother you, (Y/N). I just…needed some help from someone who isn’t one of my brothers, and…y’know, the medic.”
“What happened?” You said, taking in his all-black getup. “What’s with the goth makeover? …And your voice being raspier than usual?”
He chuckled nervously, and it faded into a cough. “Uh…y’know, Karai stuff?”
You blinked. “... What ?”
He rubbed the back of his head. “Look, it’s a bit of a long story,” he smiled awkwardly, “...But Karai and I may have sorta…y’know, committed arson…?”
He said it as if it were something like ‘Karai and I cheated on a test’ or ‘Karai and I got a parking ticket’.
“... Leo?!” You said, staring at him in awe.
“Look that’s unimportant- The issue is that I think I knocked my bad knee out of it’s socket while we were running away, and obviously inhaled more smoke than I should’ve-”
“ Why the fuck were you commiting arson?! ” You exclaimed, cutting him off.
He sighed, fiddling with his katana’s strap. (-oh wait no, that was a…seatbelt? Right, he was in an emo phase, apparently.)
“I mean I understand the urge- who hasn’t been tempted to start a fire, all that or whatever- but you?!” You exclaimed, throwing your hands into the air wildly. “ Like, I’d expect this from Raph or Casey but… you?!” You continued, not even sure what to say.
He opened his mouth and closed it. “Uh…”
You sighed and sat down on the couch, shaking your head. “And you fucking hurt your bad knee…agh. Leo… ”
He sat down next to you, staring at the floor.
“...No.” You grunted, staring at the ceiling. “The couch is for people who don’t commit arson. You get the Stool of Shame.”
“-Huh?”
“The Stool of Shame, dude.” You reiterated, pointing at the rickety old tin seat in the corner that, based on the size, you were pretty sure was made for elementary school children.
Leo swallowed in embarrassment, but limped across the room to uncomfortably perch on the tiny stool.
You stifled a smirk at the visual of the gothed-out Leonardo staring at the ground in shame, fidgeting with his hands as he sat in the much too small chair.
“Do you feel ashamed?” You said flatly.
He nodded.
“Good. You should be. Arson is bad, Leo, and we both know that you know that it’s bad.” You said, standing up and walking towards the kitchenette to make yourself some tea.
Leo nodded again, rocking side to side on the chair anxiously.
“D’ya want mint tea or green tea? Ooh, and there’s also cherry coke I think in the fridge.” You added absently.
“Uh…green is good, no milk?” Leo said slowly.
“Cool cool. You mentioned smoke inhalation?” You said, putting the kettle on.
“Yeah…”
“Alright. How’s the throat, then?” You said. You’d been reading up a bit on throat injuries after Leo complained lightly about his long-term injuries acting up, and if it was bad then, you had a solid hunch it would be way worse now.
“...Well, I mean…It…hurts,” He shrugged, shifting in the Shame Stool as he tried to downplay the ramifications of his dumbass choices.
“Shocking.” You said, turning back to preparing the tea.
“Look, it was an accident!” He said defensively. “We didn’t plan on the alarms closing the East exit, that didn't happen last…time…oooh.” He winced, realizing his mistake a second too late.
You slowly turned back towards him, feeling your eye twitch.
“Ya wanna say that last bit one more time Leon?” You said as evenly as you could manage.
He gulped, but met your eyes. “...That didn’t…happen…last time.” He said in a small voice.
“Last time.” You repeated.
“ LAST TIME.” You said, louder this time.
Leo cringed.
You took a deep breath and tried to calm yourself. “So your knee is re-injured and your throat is hurting.” You mumbled, listing the symptoms in the hope that focusing on the task at hand would keep you from flipping out at him. “And you’ve fucking done this… twice… ”
He coughed, as if he wanted to say something, but held his tongue.
You made a sound of frustration. “Okay, more than twice?”
He nodded, brow ridges knitted together as he stared at his feet.
“You are… so lucky that I don’t have Splinter’s phone number.” You hissed.
He nodded again. “You’re right.” He said in a small voice.
“Yeah, I know I’m right!” You snapped, stirring two tablespoons of honey into his tea aggressively. Some of it spilled on the floor. “Unlike some of us, I’m not an idiot! ”
You sighed, walking across the room to hand him the mug. “Lemme go get the first aid kit. In the meantime, you have about two minutes to think of a good explanation for this.”
“Yes sensei- uh I mean (Y/N)! Yes (Y/N).” He nodded, flustered, and saved himself from meeting your eyes by taking a giant sip of tea.
You rolled your eyes and left the room to grab the first aid kit.
When you came back, he was gagging on tea.
“Is something wrong with it?” You said flatly.
“Nah, it’s- it’s fine! Maybe a little too much sugar-”
“When will you learn that your actions have consequences, Mr. I-just-inhaled-tons-of-smoke-fumes? …Heh. It’s honey, soothes the pain.” You said, smiling.
“Oh. Okay then.” He mumbled.
“So if your knee is dislocated, I’m gonna have to shove it back into place, which is gonna hurt like hell, okay?” You warned. “I do have some pain meds, but obviously they’re not exactly professional- just the drugstore over-the-counter stuff.”
He nodded and accepted the pills.
“Cool. Now…why the hell were you committing arson, Fearless Leader?” You sighed, sitting against the wall next to the Stool of Shame.
He shrugged. “Well…first off, it wasn’t like, random- It was Shredder’s stuff. Karai, Shinigami, and I were burning Shredder’s stuff. Secondly, Karai was gonna do it whether I participated or not! I had to come along to keep her safe!”
“Karai’s a tough girl, Lee. She doesn’t need you to keep her safe- plus, she’s older than you. If anything, she should be keeping you safe, right?” You said gently.
“(Y/N)- yeah she’s tough! But like…she’s not exactly as…well, y’know, stable as us!” Leo tried to explain. “I mean, she’s had a tough life, and only recently started therapy- and even then, she can’t really be forthright with her therapist because she’s gotta keep all the mutants and gang stuff secret- And so maybe I just wanna be there to keep her from doing something impulsive and hurting herself!”
You glanced over at him, and he broke eye contact in favor of taking another sip of tea.
“So then…you know exactly how I feel, huh?” You said softly.
He blinked. “Huh?”
“Feeling worried about someone who matters to ya doing impulsive shit and getting hurt?” You prompted, shooting him a half-hearted smile.
His eyes widened. “... Oh .”
You patted his shell.
“I…I’m so sorry, (Y/N), I didn’t think-”
“That I have feelings? I know, I know, I do tend to go for the emotionless robot vibe.” You joked, putting your hand on your heart dramatically. “But beneath the layers of deadpan stares and blunt comments… I hurt… ” You swooned.
Leo chuckled, shoving you lightly. “Alright, alright, laugh it up…”
“But seriously, Leo.” You said, leaning on the wall again. “It’s scary when you go out there and get hurt. You’re one of my best friends in the universe, and y’know…I don’t like seeing you get needlessly injured. Karai’s a big girl, let her handle her own problems. Maybe try bonding with her over…I dunno, bubble tea instead of arson, you know?” You chuckled.
He smiled, leaning back. “Alright, you’re right.”
“Now…look. All the nice feelings stuff aside…” You said, studying his knee. “I’m sorry but I’m gonna have to call Don about this one. I don’t exactly trust my ability to do this without causing a fracture.”
“Aw, (Y/N)-”
***
Over the past few months, being the team medic had grown into a more comfortable position. You actually felt you were helping, and more importantly, it was kinda fun!
However, all of that was under the watchful eye of one Donatello Hamato. He was far more useful in terms of the steps after first aid, and you weren’t too sure you’d be able to trust yourself as a medic just yet without his minor help- that’s to say, he was a nice safety harness in the risky rockwall that was being an ametuer medic.
So when you lost said safety net, you weren’t 100% sure how to react.
It had been a normal night of waiting in the lair while the turtles went on a normal patrol until it wasn’t.
There was a flurry of movement in the tunnels, a yelp, and the siblings were storming into the lair in a panic.
“Lab! Now! ” Leo cried.
Mikey was tearful, Raph panicking, and Leo’s face was trying to be stoic and failing. Your gaze shifted to Don, who hung from Leo and Raph’s shoulders, unconscious.
You threw the lab doors open, and Raph laid Don down on the work counter before sinking to the floor in a stunned silence.
“Wha- What happened?” You said, trying to bite back your panic. Right, pressure, pressure, I’m- I’m good under pressure, be chill (Y/N)-
Leo paced the floor. “Ambush. Tigerclaw and co. Didn’t think they were gonna be there… I-I didn’t know-”
You patted his shoulder. “Of course you didn’t, Lee, take a deep breath- What happened to Don?”
“They got him in the shoulder.” Mikey supplied.
You stifled a ‘Ya think?!’ and tugged on some latex gloves. You approached Donnie, biting your lip nervously.
There was a… a lotta blood. He was losing it by the second.
“How long has he been bleeding?” You asked, your voice coming out so much calmer than you felt.
“Half an hour? Maybe?” Leo said helplessly.
Half an hour and still bleeding… so so much…
I’m definitely not experienced enough to handle a transfusion operation, so- just gotta stick with Don’s emergency med stash and- and stitching-
He was pale. You didn’t know that scales could be pale . You swallowed the bile in your throat and opened the drawer of sterile equipment.
Needle and thread, needle and thread, needle and thread… Your brain chanted unhelpfully as you tried to locate them.
Hydrogen peroxide, disinfect the wound-
You soaked a cloth with the hydrogen peroxide and cleaned the gashes, and his breathing sped up. Understandable. You were confident that it stung.
Wincing, you continued cleaning.
“Is he- is he okay?” Raph whispered from the floor.
I- maybe?! No?! I- I don’t know, I’m just- ah-
“He will be.” You said firmly, as if you weren’t mentally spiralling. You tried to focus on the repetitive motion of cleaning the wound.
You swallowed and reached for the needle.
Raph tracked your actions, and, eyes going wide as he realized what you were planning, covered his mouth in horror and discomfort, no doubt picturing the feeling of stitches in his own shoulder. Huh, you hadn’t expected Raph to be squeamish, ha. Oh god you also sorta wanted to throw up-
“Leo, we should get Raph outta here before he hurls!” Mikey said, as if he wasn’t feeling just as freaked out.
“Actually, all of you should probably step out so I can focus.” You said, hoping to end the performance anxiety and pressure all the pressure all of-
“Are you sure?” Said Leo.
“A hundred percent.” You said firmly.
Raph bolted out and Mikey followed.
Leo shot Don a final nervous glance.
“He’ll be okay.” You said, faking stoic confidence. “I promise.”
He nodded, and followed his brothers out of the lab.
You swallowed nervously and got to work.
***
“Oohhh…” Don moaned.
Uh-oh.
You were really glad he was conscious- but you were not glad that he had chosen to wake up before you finished stitching his skin back together.
“Shhh, it’s okay-” You tried to whisper, but Donnie’s eyes shot open.
“Oh my god….why does my shoulder feel like- eugghhhh….” He groaned. “ Tigerclaw… ”
“You’re on the best pain meds in your collection, but uh….” You mumbled guiltily. “I wasn’t quite finished with ya.”
Don gave a double take as his eyes traveled up to his half-stitched mess of a shoulder.
He gave a weak sound of discomfort and nausea.
You took a deep breath and smiled weakly. “Uh…did I fuck it up?”
“No…it looks…ha…great.” He said with a laboured breath. “Well, obviously not great, but like- you know- solid stitchwork…”
You winced. “Aw Don, don’t strain yourself by talking…”
“I’m-...I’m okay.” He insisted despite the weak warble of his voice. “See? I told-...I told you we’d need a medic that isn’t me, remember? Looks like I….picked the right person, huh?” He smiled.
You gave a weak sound that might have been either a laugh or a sob.
Your hands trembled in their blood-stained gloves, and you tried to ignore it as you continued stitching.
His breath hitched everytime you pierced his skin, and you tried to ignore the involuntary- and illogical- guilt at hurting him.
“How ‘bout- y- Ahem. How about you?” He said softly.
“Huh?” You hummed, pulling the largest wound closed at last.
“Are you okay?”
You drew in a shaky breath and tried to keep your hands from shaking. “I mean…I’ve been better,” You deadpanned, although your heart was clearly not in it.
“Ditto. Hope I don’t look too much like Frankenstein’s monster once we’re through with this, eh?” He chuckled, but it died in a whimper of pain.
You cringed.
Don’s smile faded, and he glanced at you. “Seriously though…are you okay?”
You sighed, wringing your bloody hands. “...Are you sure I’m the best person for this job?”
“Do you….do you not want to be?” He asked.
You shrugged noncommittally.
Maybe you didn’t. What had these past few months been if not stressful? Maybe April was better for the job. Maybe you didn’t want it.
No, that wasn’t true.
Admittedly, fixing Donnie’s wounds yourself was far less scary than it would have been to wait outside with the others, unsure if he was getting better or not. And you maybe-sorta-liked being the one Leo went to when he hurt his knee, the one to comfort Mikey as he dealt with feelings, the one to fix Raph up when he did dumb shit as per usual.
Yeah, you liked being a medic. What you didn’t love quite so much was the grimace of pain on Donnie’s face as he worried about whether or not the person he trusted with his life even wanted to help him.
You sighed and began bandaging his shoulder.
“...I do, Dee, I guess I just worry is all…’Cause what if I do something wrong? This is far more high-pressure than like…a math test, y’know?”
Don frowned. “Well you’re doing great right now if it makes you feel any better…”
“Oh yeah? Thanks.” You smiled. “You taught me well, genius.”
“Nah, I never showed you all the procedures and stuff- that’s all you , you know.” Don smiled, closing his eyes.
You glanced down at the bandage, realizing that he was right- you’d learned this in a life guard training lesson a few summers ago. Huh.
“Besides, can you imagine like- Mikey or Casey or someone being in charge of this? I’d end up even more injured than before!” He chuckled.
“I mean…I won’t argue with you there…” You snorted.
“Anyways, I trust you, (Y/N). I know that I’m in good hands.” He said with another smile.
“You sure? ‘Cause these look more like zombie hands or somethin’ to me,” You joked, holding up your blood-stained gloves. It was a true testament to Don’s hidden unhinged-ness that he burst into laughter rather than scolding you for the joke that you admittedly realized was in poor taste.
“It’s just…ketchup, don’t worry about it!” He quipped through his laughter.
“Mm, yeah, totally!” You grinned, tossing the gross gloves into the trash before washing your hands.
“Well Don…I think you’ll be okay. D’you want me to go get your brothers?”
He nodded. “Sounds good. And (Y/N)? Thank you. For everything.”
You smiled, punching him lightly on his good arm. “Hey, I’m just doin’ my job.”
***