Chapter Text
At what point in your life do you stop remembering key points? You live it through, the entire time, but you blank when you're thinking of what you had for breakfast this morning. Maybe it could be the fact your brain doesn't have enough space for information so it pushes the least important things out; so why do you also forget the important parts? Your skull should have enough room, so why does it keep pushing it out? Why does your mind go blank? Where does it go? Does it stay there? Or does it float off into outer space with astronauts? There are so many questions, yet not enough answers.
Mikey looks down, his lips forming a grimace, people around him are talking; he can't bother to tune into the conversation. He kicks his feet back and forth, now noticing how he's not focusing on the questions, but moving his legs in rhythm. Then moving his focus to the noises around him, on the roof. (right, he's on patrol) He turns around, looking at the three brothers. They're talking about some plan Mikey missed out on, he's sure he could wing it. He'd get yelled at anyway. Mikey stands up, deciding to listen in to the conversation.
"And that's where you come in," Leo references over to Mikey as if he'd walked over at the right time, "He'll be the distraction." Oh.
Mikey's brows furrow. "Why do I always have to be the distraction?!" He fumes, bawling his fists up. "It's not fair!"
Raph shrugs, his arms crossed against his cracked plastron, his usual smug smirk plastered on his face. "Because you're a good one." He's making fun of him again, it's obvious, a patronizing smile. One Mikey's found to hate over the months. He doesn't hate Raph of course, he just hates how he's never taken seriously.
So, Mikey acts like all his anger is gone, but it's more swallowed down than anything. He smiles, one that's fooled his brothers time and time again; he wonders if it'll ever stop. "Buzz buzz?" He asks, forming that childlike wonder in his eyes, maybe if he used that enough he could get anything he wanted. (anything but respect)
Leo smiles reassuringly, patting Mikey's head in a sort of brotherly way. "Buzz buzz."
~×~
A couple of hours later, they arrive back at the lair. Raph groans as he throws himself on two of the pillows in the main room. Donnie doesn't say anything as he walks to his lab, two canisters of mutagenic cradled in his arm. Leo walks over to the rooms, briefly saying he's going to bed. Mikey stands there, fidgeting with his fingers for a couple of seconds. He could always go skating in the sewers, he's not tired; he can't feel his eyes getting heavy yet. Mikey's eyes flash over to Raph briefly before his legs start moving over to the TV. He pulls his T-phone out for a second, checking the time, '2:34 am' it reads. He curses internally, having to get up early for breakfast. Mikey doesn't want to think of that right now. He places his phone back into his belt and sits by Raph. "Go to bed, dude," Mikey says, a hint of demand in his voice, but not noticeable if you don't look for it. "You're gonna regret it in the morning when your shells achin'." Mikey's right, he sometimes is. But when it comes from him, it's not correct or veracious.
A small groan comes from the pillow, muffled by the worn-out fabric of the comforting sleep trap. Mikey shrugs, standing up, "I guess you're gonna have to deal with Master Splinter in the morning when he sees you sleeping out here." Mikey sighs mockingly. Going to walk away, but hearing a shift in the surrounding.
"Fine." Raph spat, sitting up, propped up by one arm. Mikey shot him a toothy grin, knowing he won. Raph just rolled his eyes, groggily walking to his room. Mikey sighed quietly looking over at Donnie's lab, wondering if Donnie is a lost cause. He probably is, but that doesn't stop him from trying. The Turtle walked over to his door, knocking on it lightly, then inviting himself in. Donnie seemed too occupied to notice his little brother was even in there, messing with the mutagen, staring at it as if he looked at it long enough the answers would spill out of the canister.
"Dee?" Mikey asked, soft enough to try not to scare Donnie. He didn't try hard enough because his brother jumped out of his skin when he was called. Although, his face softened immediately when he saw it was just his younger brother.
Donnie gave him a tired smile, "Yeah? Do you need something?" Donnie acted as though he didn't know what Mikey was there for. He knew.
Mikey walked over to Donnie, slowly, leaving the door open a small bit. "What are you working on?" He asks, daring to initiate conversation.
Donnie looks back over to his desk, sighing in annoyance. "I'm trying to figure out the chemical components of the retro-mutagen if I can find out the base structure of the chemical, then I can find out how to make an antidote," Donnie explains, then looking over to Mikey who just looks like he explained the quantum theory to a child; which technically wasn't far off.
Donnie sighs with a smile, shaking his head, "You have zero idea what I just said, do you?" Mikey slowly shakes his head in agreement and shrugs.
"It's okay, Dee, I'll leave the nerdy stuff to you." Donnie scoffs at that, seemingly offended, but the anger dies down quickly. "But you do need to go to bed." Mikey shoots.
Donnie groans quietly, moving his gaze back to his equipment, rather taking interest in anything than this conversation. "Come on, Donnie, you can't survive on decaf coffee alone," Mikey says, furrowing his brow. (lack thereof) Donnie looks up to see around five cups of empty coffee, the rims of dark brown edges visible, staining the porcelain. He pretends not to notice. "You're going to rot in here," Mikey says, in a different tone from his usual 'happy-go-lucky' manner. Donnie takes this into account but says nothing about it. He hates to admit that, out of all people, Mikey is right. Something Donnie is too stubborn to do anyway. He rolls his eyes but looks back up at his baby brother.
"If I sleep, will you stop complaining?" The purple-banded brother asks, wanting to make his brother happy, but not wanting to hint anything about that. Mikey nods slowly, hoping to do anything to have Donnie just get at least a couple of hours of sleep.
Donnie rubs his temples, sighing. "Fine. If you'll stop being annoying." Mikey smiles, it's not any of his signature smiles, a dismal one, it doesn't reach his eyes, but he doubts that Donnie would notice.
He does.
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