Work Text:
Safety net / swooning / “how many fingers am I holding up?”
Don wasn’t sure when or how he ended up in the helicopter, just that it was loud and his head was fuzzy. He was vaguely aware of his brothers around him, but wasn’t really sure of much else.
“Rest, my friend.” that was Leatherhead, wasn’t it? Was it his cool, roughly scaled arms holding Don up? “You are safe.”
He was safe. That felt right.
Yeah, safe with his family.
Everything was fuzzy…
He opened his eyes slowly, looking around, but they were no longer on the helicopter. He was on the couch in the lair, propped up with some pillows and wrapped in a few blankets, yet still freezing. He grabbed the edge of the pile, pulling them tighter around his shoulders despite the ache in his joints.
He felt like he’d been thrown through a blender, realizing then that his whole body hurt, and along with the fuzziness was dizziness and nausea, and the cold could be signs of a fever.
He felt a hand settle on his forehead, rubbing his skin softly. “It’s okay, you’re home.” the voice of his brother, Raph said. “We’ve got you Donny.”
He knew that to be true. His brothers had his back, always. That was why they hadn’t wanted him to go fight mutants after he’d thrown up in the Shellraiser, right? They didn’t want him to be left so vulnerable.
He leaned into his twin's touch, and Raph rumbled comfortingly, his hand staying in comforting contact until Don drifted off again.
It was slightly less fuzzy when he woke up next, and he managed to see who was with him before they spoke. Mikey was sitting against the couch, reading a comic book and humming to himself.
When Don shifted to look over at him, Mikey turned and gave him a big smile. “Hey bro! How are you feeling?”
Don wanted to ask for the number of the bus that hit him, but he was still so tired, he wasn’t sure he had the energy to speak. He felt so drained.
He remembered the brothers dropping him off at April’s apartment, oh jeez he’d interrupted her and Casey’s date. They were so kind, willing to take care of him while his brothers finished what he’d started.
His response to Mikey ended up being a shrug as Mikey set his comic aside and wrapped an arm around Don’s shell. “You’ll be okay, Donny, we’ll make sure of it.”
He knew that. He didn’t feel the same kind of sick anymore, and he felt like it had something to do with his brothers. They’d helped him, saved him.
Don nuzzled into Mikey’s hold, churring and bringing a brighter smile to the orange-banded turtle's face. Mikey joined Don in the cushions, pulling him closer much to the purple-turtles enjoyment.
And the dull, uncomfortable ache gave way to the warmth of his brother.
That time he hadn’t realized he’d fell back asleep until he was opening his eyes to Leo rubbing his shoulder to wake him up. “Hey, Don. sorry to wake you. Can you sit up for me?”
Don pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders, burying his face in them.
Leo chuckled. “Ah, I knew you’d been too complacent. You’ve never been good with being sick.”
Don managed to narrow his eyes at him and begrudgingly followed his directions to sit up. Leo had him eat some warm broth and drink some water, then gave him a quick checkup, during which Don stared at his blankets, trying not to focus on the way his arms and legs felt like lead and like they’d been torn to shreds.
Torn to shreds…
The whiplash of the reminder of his stay with April and the way his leg had begun spasming, the muscles twisting unnaturally. The pain had been so much…
And he’d been alone.
The moment he’d needed his family as a safety net, they weren’t there, even April and Casey were in the other room, searching for a flashlight.
“Don.” he snapped out of the memory to look up at Leo, who was holding his hand up. “How many fingers am I holding up?”
Don blinked, focusing on the hand, not the pain or the memory. “One.”
“Good, stay here with me, okay?” Leo rubbed his shell and Don couldn’t help but lean back into the touch.
They were here now, that was what mattered. He was safe, and protected, and getting better.
He wasn’t alone anymore.