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Chapter Text

Ever since Mikey was a little kid, everyone had at least noticed once how small he was for his age. If it was his wild supply of energy or his extremely fast metabolism; nobody knew how he could pack so much food into his stomach without gaining any weight. The funny thing was that all Mikey ate were fats and proteins, he should have at least gained some weight by now. Nope. He was actually considered underweight, but only his family knew that. That and his best friends.

The previous school year, he had reached unfair treatment when it came to his lunches at school, kids often stared and muttered complete lies to their friends behind his back. But that didn't mind Mikey to much, plus his brothers didn't know about the harsh words being spread around like wildfire about him. When it came to harsh words, his brothers words were the only words that Mikey would believe.

His brothers cared and loved him, they wouldn't hurt him on purpose unlike the bullies at school. Speaking of school…

"Mikey get up!" Leo yelled from downstairs, 'I'm not going to repeat myself!"

"Ugg.." Mikey groaned as got up from his warm paradise, his feet hit the floor as he straightened his posture. He shuddered from the cold as he slipped on black shorts with his orange hoodie. After fixing his hair and grabbing his backpack; Mikey trudged into the kitchen downstairs.

"You ok Mike?," Leo asked as he handed a piece of toast to his younger brother. Mikey nodded his head and quickly begun to eat his toast with slumped shoulders.

"Well," Leo grabbed his keys, "Let's get you to school, Don and Raph already left. Here's your lunch," he tossed Mikey a metal tin lunchbox, "I packed you two sandwiches along with a small salad and a brownie."

"Thanks Leo," Mikey said with a huge smile as he got up to hug his older brother.

Leo grinned, "Of course little bro, but we really should get going…."

"Yup," Mikey grabbed his orange backpack as he ran over to his older brothers car. Opening the door and depositing himself in it, he waited patiently for Leo.

"Look who has lots of energy today," Leo chuckled opening the door, he started the engine, and they were off. It wasn't long before they had pulled up to Mikeys middle school.

Leo rubbed Mikey's blond curly hair, "Well Mikey, Don will drive you home. I have a shift at the hospital today."

Mikey nodded remembering how hard Leo worked after their father died, Leo wanted to become a nurse. Which after two long years, Leo had become a fully certified nurse; his brothers couldn't be prouder of him. Still, the eldest brother is very careful with his hours, he comes home around six only to leave around eight that morning.

"Bye Leo," Mikey said one last time before he hugged his older brother, Leo smiled, "Bye Mike, see you later tonight."

Giving a small wave, Mikey opened the door and walked over to his middle school. His middle school was pretty good for it's size, it had hundreds of classes, many in the fine arts department.

"Hey Mikey!" A voice called out. Mikey looked up from the ground and waved, "Hey Oliver!" he called out as he ran over to his friend. Oliver was Mikeys best friend, he had blond hair along with unusually pale features. He was a member on the football team as well.

"Sooo.." Oliver slung his arm on Mikeys shoulders, "How was summer break?"

Mikey grinned, "It was radical dude, we went to Hawaii for a few weeks!"

"Did you meet any girls?" Oliver teased. Mikey slapped him lightly in the arm, "No, if I can remember correctly, my brothers were constantly with me, how could a girl even approach me? My brothers are kinda intimating."

"And kinda hot…"

"OLIVER!"

Oliver chuckled, "Only kidding Mike."

Mikey gave a small smile as he continued to walk down the hallway. Many different kinds of girls waved at him, as much as Mikey would hate to admit it; the only reason girls remotely even gave a single glance to him was because of his hot football friend. And in a way, that brothered him a little bit. He was hot…..to a certain extent at least.

"Hey Mikey," Oliver looked at his best friend nervously, "Are we sitting with your brothers at lunch today?"

"Yeah, why do you ask?"

Oliver sighed, "Since I'm on the football team, it's only fair that I sit with them. You wouldn't mind sitting away from your brothers for just a few days…..right?"

"Oliver….."

"Please Mikey, just for a few days. This is really important to me."

Mikey considered his options, he could either abandon his best friend or his brothers. Either one sucked, but it was just for a few days…..

"Fine, but only for a few days."

Oliver beamed, "Thanks Mike!" The bell rung. "Oh, that's the bell, I'll see you at lunch!" he called out as he ran over to his class. Mikey followed suit.

The rest of the day had gone by in a blur, he went to his art class then to his English class..bleh… then to his PE class…fun times….and now it was lunch.

As Mikey stepped into the cafeteria with his lunch bag in hand; he looked around for his brothers. He had to bring up the sudden disappearance for the next few days, so his brothers won't worry. It wasn't long before his eyes landed on his hot-tempered and genius brothers.

Walking over to them, he watched Donnie's frown turn into a smile as soon as he eyes landed on him.

"Hey Mike," Donnie greeted, "How's your day been?"

Mikey bounced on his heels, "Amazing, hey Don and Raph?"

Both brothers looked up with concern and worry. Had something bad happened?

"Did something happen Mikey?" Raph asked, his fists clutched in case the worst had happened. Nobody messed with his brothers, especially his youngest brothers.

Mikey shook her head, "No Raph, Oliver wants me to sit with him for a few days. Is that ok?"

Donnie and Raph both glanced at each other, this was different. Ever since they were little, it had become their "rule" to always sit with one another at lunch. But then again, it's high school, and a few days couldn't hurt.

"Ok," Donnie replied, "But only for a few days. Pinky promise?" he stuck out his pinky. Mikey hooked his finger in connection with his older brothers pinky. He shook their hands.

"Yes Don, I promise."

His genius older brother gave one small nod as Mikey skipped over to his best friends table. The table consisted of large older senior football players. When they all glanced at Mikey as he took a seat, Mikey tried his best to lower his excitement.

"Hey Mike!" Oliver said as he faced his best friend, "This is the football team, their all seniors, can you believe that?!"

Yep, he could definitely believe that, the height was a pure example of that. Putting a smile on his face, he opened his lunchbox and begun to eat. At first, Mikey was terrified to eat in front of such high classified men, but ultimately it wasn't that bad. Mostly because the football players didn't pay any attention to him, just Oliver. Even then, they were mostly to themselves. It was almost calming, relaxing.

All the football players talking to his best friend was extremely fun to watch, the way that Oliver looked and talked to them showed how comfortable he had become with them. And for that, everything felt worth it.

Mikey watched the interaction take place from the sidelines, silently listening to the different points that the athletic men shared. It wasn't until he felt the tap on his shoulder that he brought himself back to reality.

Looking to the side, he saw who had tapped his shoulder and almost instantly regretted it. Standing there were his former bullies, Alec, and Axel. Every single year, those two had managed to screw up his school year in one way or another. The rage he felt for them was out of this world.

Mikey turned his head back, trying not to pay attention or give the satisfaction of acknowledging their presence. But Alec wasn't having it today. He aggressively kept tapping Mikeys shoulder, of which Mikey still continued to not turn his head. But the football players kept looking at him weird, he couldn't be weird in front of Olivers new friends.

"What is it Alec?" Mikey asked as he finally twisted his head to see his enemy's, "Could you please go?"

Alec laughed, "Sure but I hope you know that you're very pudgy!" Axel slapped his best friends hand as they took off laughing to themselves.

"Pudgy?" Mikey whispered to himself, that was a new one. Staring down at his food, he decided to shrug it off. Those words didn't mean anything if he allowed them to, and he wasn't. There were just bullies that only cared about themselves. In a way, Mikey felt sorry for them.

"Hey?" Oliver shook Mikeys shoulder, "Are you ok?"

Mikey nodded, he put on a smile and cleared his mind, he wouldn't allow Alec and Axel to get below his skin. He hadn't before and he surely wasn't going to start now.

With that thought in mind, Mikey continued to eat his lunch. It wasn't long before the lunch bell rung, Mikey waved goodbye as he headed to the rest of his classes. Math…boring…. science…. fairly interesting…going home…yes!

Mikey walked out the doors with a happy spirit, today had been good, well except for his bullies making a sudden appearance. But that didn't matter.

Searching the courtyard, Mikey easily spotted Donnie's dark purple car. He ran over and deposited himself in the front seat. It was a little bit before Donnie showed up, but he eventually did. Starting the engine, Donnie backed out of the parking lot and headed for home.

"Soo how was your day Mikey?" Donnie asked.

"It was good," Mikey beamed, "My classes were alright, and I got to sit with the football players!"

Donnie laughed but quickly frowned, "speaking of lunch, who were those boys talking to you?"

"You saw that?"

"Well yeah, me and Raph were watching you the entire lunch period," Donnie turned left, "And before you say that's weird, we're your big brothers, we just wanted to make sure you were ok."

Mikey twiddled with his thumbs, "Still a bit weird, but those boys were Alec and Axel."

"Are they bullies?" Donnie asked holding his breath.

In all reality, the answer was yes but Mikey wasn't about to worry his brothers with that. Anyway, he could handle a few unkind people coming his way.

"Nope, we're close friends," Mikey replied confidently. Donnie looked over and sighed but didn't elaborate on the topic. After that, it was a quiet ride home.

Taking a few more rights and lefts, Donnie pulled up to their apartment. Mikey quickly got out and ran up to his room before any of his older brothers could interrogate him further. He stayed up in his room and did homework until he could smell dinner coming from downstairs.

"MIKEY DINNER'S READY," Leo shouted from downstairs. Mikey got off his bed and ran downstairs. He was starving! Raph had made pasta for dinner, with the kitchen still intact. A new achievement.

"Yummm," Mikey exclaimed as he helped himself to dinner. He grabbed ladleful's of pasta as he dumped them on his plate. Almost immediately, he picked up the fork and begun to eat.

"Wow Mike, that's a lot of pasta," Leo chuckled. Mikey only gave a small grin as he continued to inhale his delicious dinner.

"Yeah Mikey," Raph said lightly, "Stop being such a pig!"

That comment made Mikey look up, he set his fork down as he tried to take in what his older brother had said. Sure, he knew that Raph hadn't meant it but had he? Maybe Raph did mean it…..Alec and Axel also commented on his figure. That had to mean something.

Mikey pushed his food away, "I'm not hungry anymore." Leo frowned, "Mikey, you know Raph didn't mean it, but what he said was uncalled for," he glared at Raph who looked down with shame, "Eat, your skinny for your age."

Yeah right

Leo was only saying that so Mikey wouldn't waste food. Taking a look at himself, he did indeed see the small flabs of skin layering his stomach. People said that he was bony…but were they lying? Were they just trying to make him feel better about the truth?

"No, it's fine, I honestly ate a big snack before dinner," Mikey replied trying to hide the hurt in his eyes. Leo and his older brothers looked skeptical, but they didn't come back to the topic. The rest of the dinner consisted of watching Mikey watch others eat from the sideline and talking to each other.

Oh, how Mikey wanted to eat the rest of the pasta, but the simple comments brought back worry that he didn't even know somebody could feel. He even passed up dessert saying that he was full from dinner. His brothers bought it.

That night, Mikey went to bed hungry thinking about the comments that were going to stop him from eating, to become skinner than he already was. It was his mission.

Chapter Text

Beep…. Beep…. Beep

Mikey turned over and lightly turned off his alarm, giving a small groan, he collected himself as he abruptly sat up on his cushioned bed.

6:30…great

Last night, the youngest brother of the Hamato clan had formatted a plan for his new "diet" plan. His original plan consisted of him doing indespicable things like throwing up his meals or throwing away the food offered to him. But after some forethought, drinking water for his meals along with getting to the car before his brothers in the morning seemed easier. For lunch, he would just give his friend Oliver his food, Oliver loved the kind of lunch that Mikeys brothers would pack for him. It benefited both of them.

He had no idea what to do for dinner though…..that was for a later thought.

Getting up with his shoulders slumped, Mikey found a clean shirt as he slipped it over his skinny body. He grabbed the nearest pair of brown pants and quickly transferred them for the pj bottoms he was wearing. Putting on his usual pair of shoes, Mikey grabbed his backpack and quickly ran down the stairs.

As he passed the kitchen, he couldn't keep but remember his dying hunger. He walked over and opened the fridge; he looked down to see the perfect piece of cake just sitting there with his name on it. His hand reached out to take it…..his fingers touched the plastic wrap lining the delicious dessert.

It looks so good!

His small bony fingers lifted the plastic wrap higher and higher until the piece of cake was accessible to eat. The frosting…. the small sprinkles…. the chocolate cake itself looked to good to pass down. Plus, he was really hungry!

He pulled the piece of cake out of the fridge as he grabbed a plate. With his new diet plan forgotten, Mikey found a fork and partook of a small piece of cake. The flavors died in his mouth as he giggled with joy.

It tastes amazing…. I want more!

He grabbed his fork and took another small bite of the rich dessert in front of him. More and more…. almost half the cake was good before Mikey realized what he had just done.

"No no no no no," Mikey muttered to himself. Had could he have forgotten already? Was he really that weak when it came to food? Apparently so, it would take a lot more effort on his part to avoid eating all together.

Grabbing a roll of plastic wrap, Mikey quickly wrapped the cake as he set it inside the fridge. He felt ashamed…more than that. The realization on just how feeble he was stuck knives into his heart. This was not going to be smooth sailing at all, far from it.

Sighing, Mikey grabbed his backpack and lunch as he departed to his brothers car. Depositing himself into the back seat, he thought about what he was truly trying to take on. It seemed easy at first, but that previous experience showed how he couldn't easily pass down the desserts placed in front of him. That went with mention of other foods he craved and loved.

He was so deep in thought; he missed his older brothers frantic face when he locked the door. Leo looked around for his younger brother and became overwhelmed with worry when his brother wasn't anywhere he had attempted to look. But once he laid eyes on Mikey who looked he was pondering in his back seat, relief easily overtook him.

"Mikey? How come your already up?" Leo asked as he got in and turned on the engine. Taking a right turn, he kept a careful eye as always.

Mikey grinned, "What? Are you saying that I don't get up early?"

"No," Leo took another right turn, "I'm just saying that you're a pain to drag out of bed every morning. I'm just surprised."

"Wow, the audacity!" Mikey said as he faked being rudely insulted. Leo only gave him the "look" as he turned into the high schools parking lot.

Leo leaned back and gave his younger brother a small hug, "Ok be safe Mikey, Don will take you home again today. Do you have your lunchbox?"

Mikey nodded and got out. It wouldn't matter if he did happen to leave his lunchbox at home, it wasn't like he was going to eat any of it. And Oliver would live one day without his brothers homemade food. Taking that new thought in mind, Mikey quickly walked up to his school and walked over to his first class, which happened to be math.

Now, when Mikey had the thought to stop eating, that didn't include not being able to concentrate. The entire class period, Mikey's stomach kept rumbling as his mind kept getting distracted. Not even a simple addition problem could bring his attention back. He was long gone in his thoughts.

It was even worse in P.E, his legs kept wobbling all over the place as his breath quickened in many places. What made it even worse was the headache residing in his head the entire time. It felt like a hammer kept hitting his poor head over and over again. Except, every hit was unlike the first, new amounts of pain came with every throb.

It got so bad that in his third class, he kept his head on the desk the entire time trying to block any light that would further aggravate his headache. The teacher hadn't even questioned it once, she was to busy trying to help those who seemed to want her personal assistance. In her opinion, she wasn't paid enough to care for those who wanted to fail. Or in this case, not pay attention to her lecture and worksheets.

When it did come time for lunch, he walked over to his best friends table with shaky legs. It had only been a few hours and he felt drained. Taking a seat, he got out his lunchbox and opened it. His mouth watered at the sight of it, the sandwiches along with the rest of the cake he didn't eat looked absolutely delicious. It was almost like his brothers were forcing him to eat without their presence. And it was working.

"Hey Mikey!" Oliver said loudly as he tapped his best friends shoulder. Mikey looked over and smiled, his friend would definitely accept his offer.

"Hey Oliver!" Mikey got out his food and passed it over, "I ate a huge breakfast this morning, I'm not hungry. Would you like any of this?"

Oliver nodded and quickly grabbed the food; his smile was huge. He didn't even question it, which let relief flood Mikeys soul. It was good to have a best friend who didn't question his discissions, but then again, that was concerning on its own.

"Wow Mike," Oliver inhaled a sandwich, "Your brothers really know how to make a sandwich!"

Mikey laughed, "Yup, I get that a lot."

It was then that his stomach decided to growl loudly. Mikey gulped as he hoped that his best friend hadn't heard. But it was far to late for that.

"Are you sure you aren't hungry?" Oliver asked concerned. He set the sandwich down and slid it over to Mikey, who only pushed it back. "Yeah Oliver, I'm sure."

Oliver didn't look convinced, "Ok…you better not be lying." Mikey gave a small nod as he chuckled nervously. That had been way to close.

Mikey waited as he watched the seconds tick by, for once, he wanted lunch to end. It was awful to watch everyone eat when he couldn't allow himself the same luxury. In a way, he felt guilty for hurting his own body. But this had to be done, it was the only way that he would accept. It was especially hard to watch his best friend consume the food that his brothers had graciously made for him. It was to the point where Mikey turned his head.

"Mikey? Are you sure your ok?" Oliver asked worried, Mikey was always so full of life and joy at lunch. But now…he wasn't.

Mikey felt his anger growing, "Yes Oliver, I've said I am fine for the past 30 minutes. Can you just stop asking me that!"

Oliver pulled back but gave a small unsure nod. He went back to eat the cake that had been offered to him. Mikey looked down; he hadn't meant to snap. He didn't even know what he was angry about, maybe not eating was really getting to him. If this kept up, everyone would know about his fowl plan. He couldn't have that.

"I'm sorry Oliver, I just didn't sleep well last night," Mikey apologized as he rubbed his eyes. The headache had yet to cease. He hadn't anticipated the consequences to his new diet plan, he would have to look into that.

Oliver gave a small smile, "it's ok, I understand." He packed his lunchbox in his backpack, "I can just sense something is bothering you and as your best friend, I just want to help. You get me?"

Giving a small nod, Mikey reached down and picked up his backpack. The bell rung at the moment as he and Oliver gave a small goodbye. Olivers sad sigh wasn't missed as Mikey tried to maneuver his way through the crowd. He wanted to tell Oliver everything but he just…..couldn't. At least not yet.

Making his way over to his last class, Mikey stifled a small yawn. Throughout his last class, he had to keep squinting his eyes against the classroom ceiling lights. His headache only seemed to get worse as his stomach kept rumbling. His insides felt twisted.

"Ok class, you are dismissed!" The teacher called out. Students started to get up and collect their stuff before departing the classroom. "Wait! Can Michelangelo please come up to my desk!"

Mikeys head snapped up as he heard his name. The teacher wanted to see him? He racked his mind trying to think about all the different things the teacher would call him up for, but in the end, he couldn't think of a single reason.

With unstable legs, Mikey made his way up to his former teachers desk. When he got there, the teacher smiled, "I assume your Mikey?"

"Yes"

She nodded, "I just want to make sure your ok, you seemed very distant in class today."

Of course…. when would the concerned questions end? But this wasn't the time to snap at anyone, so he bit the bullet and let the truth out.

"I just didn't eat lunch today, I had to catch up on something," he responded. In all reality, it was half of the real truth.

"Ok," The teacher reached into her desk and brought out an apple, "I hate to see my students starved, here…" she handed him the apple, "this should hold you until you get home."

Wow…a teacher that actually cares. That was a first. Mikey smiled and gave a nod as he walked out of the classroom. Almost immediately, he stuck the apple in his backpack to avoid temptation of eating it. He walked out of the school and looked for Donnie, when he couldn't find him, he took out his phone and checked his messages.

Hey Mikey, I have to stay after school for a little while, 30 minutes at most. Just wait by the library, I'll see you soon. – Donnie

Nope

He was not going to wait, after the day he had, it was practically impossible to. Every minute at school felt like an eternity already, he just wanted to go home. It wasn't to long of a walk to home anyways.

It's ok Don, Raph has offered to take me home. – Mikey

Sighing, Mikey knew that he would have to walk home fast. He had to get home before Donnie, or his brothers would freak. Leo had forbid his youngest brother from walking home, but in times like this, Mikey really didn't care.

He grabbed his backpack and begun the long trek home. It was about 20 minutes later when Mikey stepped foot inside his house. Sweat dripped down his brow as his breaths consisted of harsh gasps. He was halfway home before he decided to run. Time was ticking. But with the usual food in his stomach gone, Mikey found it harder to keep his momentum up.

He quickly retreated upstairs and flopped on his bed. Taking in the time to breathe correctly, he continued to stare at his ceiling.

"MIKEY!"

Awww not now!

"MIKEY! Come down here please!"

Mikey grunted and painfully lifted himself up. He set his feet on the floor and stood up, he moaned to himself as he walked downstairs. But when he did…. he instantly regretted it.

Leo was standing on the bottom step, his arms crossed across his chest. He had a stern look as his aura chased out all happiness.

"Hey Leo…." Mikey chuckled nervously. Leo only mentioned him to come closer to which Mikey followed. When he did come close enough, Leo stuck out his phone.

Don, did you pick up Mikey? I got called off early. – Leo

Well, no, Mikey said that Raph was picking him up. – Donnie

That can't be possible, I needed Raph for something, so I checked him out. – Leo

What?! – Donnie

Yeah, can you see Mikey anywhere? – Leo

Hold on…let me check. – Donnie

Donnie? – Leo

DONNIE! Answer me! – Leo

Uh Leo….. – Donnie

Yea? – Leo

I can't find him anywhere; he might have walked home. – Donnie

What? I forbidden him to that. That kid! – Leo

Sorry Leo. – Donnie

It's ok, just come home safely. – Leo

"Can you explain yourself?" Leo asked sternly. Mikey gulped, "I just had a bad day and felt like walking home."

Filled with anger and worry, Leo threw his arms high in the air, "That's not good enough of a reason, I have told you many times that your not allowed to do that!"

"Sorry Leo," Mikey whimpered. He really hadn't meant to worry Leo so much, if anything, he learned his lesson. Walking home was scary alone. There was no way he would ever do that again.

"Its ok Mikey," Leo hugged his younger brother tightly, "It's just not safe to walk home your age, eascically in New York. I just worry."

"I promise I'll never do it again," Mikey promised. Leo smiled down on him as he embraced his younger brother. "Wow, your tiny," Leo chuckled.

Mikey stuck his tongue out. Leo looked back down on his brother, "Since you disobeyed me, you are required to help me with dinner."

That comment struck a nerve. There was no way that he could make dinner and not eat it, the opportunity itself was just to tempting. The thought itself made him physically sick. He hadn't eaten all day except for the cake, he couldn't throw up if he wanted to.

"Please Leo, anything but that!" Mikey whimpered. Leo gave him a weird look, "But why? You always love to make dinner with us."

That was back when he had actually been happy with himself, but now…he just wasn't. But then again, he couldn't do anything to make his brothers suspicious…but he would eat the dinner if he helped make it.

"I'm just tired, I didn't sleep at all last night," Mikey lied.

"Was it nightmares?" Leo asked concerned. For as long as he could remember, nightmares had plagued his youngest brother for the longest time.

"No"

"Okey…I'll save you some dinner in the fridge."

Mikey hugged his youngest brother, "Thanks Leo."

"Of course," Leo kissed Mikeys forehead, "Now go get some sleep otouto."

The youngest brother gave a small smile before heading upstairs. He settled himself into bed before texting his other two brothers goodnight.

Goodnight Dee. – Mikey

Already? It's 3 in the afternoon. – Donnie

I didn't sleep last night. – Mikey

Still, that's not normal, do we need to take you to the doctor?" – Donnie

"Nope, not going to respond to that," Mikey muttered. He tapped on Raph's contact.

Heading to bed, goodnight Raphie. – Mikey

No response

"Typical," Mikey also muttered. He turned his phone off and set his head on the pillow. He was actually surprised on how tired he felt, his eyes dropped as he fell into a blissful sleep.

TMNT

It was about midnight before Mikey woke up. He was dreaming about who knows what when he heard his door crack. He opened his eyes and squinted in the darkness to see his brothers stick their heads in the door.

"I'm really worried about him Leo," Donnie whispered, "He shouldn't be so tired that he sleeps at 3 in the afternoon."

Leo shook his head, "He probably had nightmares last night."

"He didn't though, I was up all last night doing homework and he didn't wake up once," Raph whispered back.

"He's hiding something," Donnie added on, "And as his older brothers, its our job to figure out."

"Don't worry Don, we will," Leo said as he closed the door.

Now that his brothers were gone, Mikey felt panic swell up inside of him. This couldn't be happening; how did he manage to screw it up all in one day? He would just have to act different, stay happy and be him.

But it wasn't long before his exhaustion came once again and brought him into the world state of unresponsiveness.

Chapter Text

It only took a few days for Mikey to feel the awful effects of not eating. Sure, he didn't stop eating completely, he allowed himself one tiny slice of an orange per day, but naturally that was far from enough. He often drank water to replace the food that was supposed to be in his stomach.

The hardest part about it all was hiding the food that had been kindly given to him. At dinner, he would hide his food under the table very subtlety, as for lunch, he would continue to give Oliver his food who gladly accepted the kind gesture.

But the worst part was that his brothers had begun to suspect at least something, but they didn't know half of it. All the tears he cried as the pain spread throughout his stomach, or the tears constally lingering in his eyes. They probably assumed that he had begun to get depressed or filled with some form of worry, but not that he wasn't eating. That was one of the furthest accusations from their mind.

Beep…..Beep…..Beep…

Mikey lifted his arm to turn off the annoying alarm clock disturbing his sleep. Shutting it off, he groaned and turned over on his side painfully. Lately, his sides have been attracting lots of unwanted pain, along with his head. He was really lucky that the pain had stayed at bay these past few days.

"Mikey?" Someone called out as he heard a small knock at the door. Lifting himself up from his glorious heaven of warmness, he walked over and opened the door. His brother Donnie was standing there twiddling his thumbs nervously.

He looked extremely uncomfortable, "Hey Mike, I just wanted to see how you were doing."

Mikey looked at his older brother strangely, since when was Don uncomfortable around him…. something wasn't adding up. "I'm um good, tired but good."

Donnie's face immediately relaxed; it was like he was holding something dire in. He gave a small nod and walked downstairs, leaving a stunned Mikey in his dust. Many questions left him spiraling, it was almost like his brothers knew his secret.

No, that couldn't be right…they acted fine last night before he went to bed. Something must have happened while he was asleep. But what? That was the question he wished could be answered. But with determination, it might just happen.

Walking downstairs with slumped shoulders, Mikey walked into the kitchen and begun to make breakfast. Luckily today was Saturday, so there was no rush on what to make. Of course, he could make something exotic and new, but he found his strength to be nonexistent. So he settled on making eggs, scrambled at that.

It was then that Raph walked in, he took one glance at the eggs and gave a sour look. He walked over to Mikey who had finished dishing up the plates, "Hey Mikey, what's with the eggs?"

"What's wrong with eggs?" Mikey asked with curiosity. In all reality, he couldn't find a single thing wrong with them, he cooked them correctly, along with seasoning them correctly. What could be wrong?

Raph shrugged, "I don't know, its just you usually cook up something…. new."

Yep, there it was. Mikey knew that at least one of his brothers was going to mention that. Luckily, he had a retort.

"I was going to cook orange juice pancakes, but we're out of orange juice."

"Oh yeah, I'll go get some today. But really orange juice pancakes?!" Raph replied keeping a careful eye on his youngest brother. He only got a shrug in return.

Mikey nodded as he set the last plate of eggs on the table, "BREAKFEST DONNIE, LEO!"

Leo and Donnie came running in with hungry expressions. They immediately sat down and began to help themselves. Raph chuckled at their antics and begun to eat as well. Mikey himself was going to sit down before he heard his phone ping in his back pocket.

He took it out and opened up the messages. It was his best friend Oliver, who seemed to be very distressed at the moment.

Hey Mikey! Please answer! – Oliver

"Mikey?" Leo called out as he looked over his younger brothers features. "Hey Leo, give me a sec, Oliver needs me," Mikey replied.

Are you ok, what's going on? – Mikey

It's my first football practice in 10 minutes. My mom kinda ditched me and I would love some friends to watch my practice. Is that ok? – Oliver

Was it ok? His brothers already were assuming things, was just running off like that be considered suspicious? Hopefully not, because his friend really needed him right now.

"Is Oliver ok?" Donnie asked bringing the young teen out of his thoughts. Mikey shrugged, "Not as well as he could be. Hey Leo?"

The eldest brother looked up, "Yes Mikey?"

"Could I go to Olivers football practice in seven minutes?" Mikey asked nervously. Leo just tilted his head and gave him the "look".

"If I remember correctly, isn't one of our rules was that none of us could hang out with anyone else until noon," Raph pointed out. Mikey groaned…he hated that rule! In his mind, there really was in point in it, they were all teenage boys, they were bound to hang out with someone before noon.

But as Leo pointed out, there were different from other families, which in all reality, they weren't. Tons of families lost their fathers and mothers, but not all of them were ninjas. At least that's what the Hamato family had going for them. Or at least, that's how it played out in Leos mind.

"Please Leo! It's important…please," Mikey begged with his puppy dog eyes. Leo just looked at his younger brother. Sighing, he knew that he couldn't trap Mikey, he would have to let him go for himself, to experience why rules were put in place.

"Fine," Leo shushed his energy-filled brother, "You have to promise to be back at 3."

Mikey beamed, "Yes sir!"

"Oh, and one more thing, did you eat this morning?" Leo asked concerned.

The youngest Hamato clan member gulped loudly, he felt like he should eat something. The dizziness and nausea were only getting worse…he didn't know how much longer he could endure. But then again, this was important, he would show that he could control his weight. That all started with going cold turkey for a while.

He was fat.

Simple as that, so he couldn't eat. Even if he really desired to.

"Mikey?"

Looking up, Mikey saw his older brothers look at him with concern and worry-filled eyes. He hadn't even realized that he was leaning all his weight against the counter, the world was spinning.

Shaking his head, he stood up on shaky legs, "I'm fine, and to answer your question, I didn't eat yet…but I'll grab something on the way to Olivers."

His brothers nodded as Donnie got up and handed his brother some money, kissing him on the forehead. Mikey said his goodbyes and took off.

As he walked over to the football flied, he couldn't help but feel how weak he felt. Every step felt like knives were lodging themselves into his head, the world spun with every movement. His stomach growled as it longed for more.

Stay strong Mikey

"Hey Mikey!"

Mikey turned his head slightly to see his best friend wave at him. He waved back as he headed to the stands. Taking a seat, he watched his best friend absolute dominate his fellow peers. Football was clearly a strength in Olivers life.

It led him to think about all the times that he could have clearly tried out for sports, his brothers had always been protective over him, so naturally Leo didn't agree to him tackling other people and most likely breaking a few bones. Plus, he was ninja, that's all he needed.

It wasn't long before practice was over, Oliver ran up to his best friend in the stands, "Hey Mikey, we're going to practice extra. Would you want to practice with us?"

It was a simple question…. So, the answer should have been simple as well. But in Mikey's mind, warnings kept flashing. He wasn't at his best, far from that. There was no way that he could stay conscious and play football at the same time.

So, he chose the only correct answer.

"Sure," Mikey replied giving his trademark smile. He couldn't have Oliver on his back as well, his brothers were already enough. He stood up on unstable legs as he fought to breathe correctly. Making his way down the field, he was amazed on how big it was from Olivers standpoint.

"Ready?" Oliver asked. Mikey gave a thumbs up as he got into a starting position. Then, the battle started. That's also when things started to go wrong.

As Mikey fought for the ball, his head spun to great heights, the pain was unbearable. His breathing consisted of small harsh gasps. The rim of his eyes were starting to smear with black.

No, no, no

He couldn't pass out now, Oliver would definitely suspect something, then he would tell his brothers….no that couldn't happen. But his body was already shutting down.

He gave one last pleading look at Oliver before he felt his world go black.

Chapter Text

Pain

Darkness

My name is being called

Everything hurts

"Mikey…. Please wake up!"

He tried to open his eyes but to no anvil did it work. His eyes were screwed shut, plus his head hurt to much to even attempt to leave his heavenly paradise.

"MIKEY!"

Nope. It would take a miracle for him to open his baby blue eyes, or at least that's what his family calls them. Even if all he could see was darkness. Black darkness.

"Call his brothers now! Mikey…buddy, please respond to me!"

Mikey felt his friend brush his arm, but his eyes still remained shut. Wait…somebody is calling his brothers? Ok…. time to get up. He grunted as he tried to regain consciousness, but it still wasn't working. Time was running out.

"Oliver, Leo went to voicemail. What should I say?"

It was then that Mikey's eyes shot open, he gasped for precious air that wasn't present. Olivers football buddy hung up the phone call without leaving a message. He put his phone in his pocket and knelled down next to Mikey.

"Are you ok Mikey? Name's Charlie," Charlie said as he gestured to Oliver to take over. Oliver's eyes were glassy and unfocused, tears streamed down his face.

"Mikey," He croaked, still obviously in shock. Taking no time to regain his awareness, he helped Mikey sit up, worry coursed through his veins.

Mikey groaned, "So I'm assuming you saw everything?"

"Yes, what caused you to faint?" Charlie asked. He felt curious and worried at the same time, if his best buds friend was in danger, he would assist where he could.

Oliver looked intently at his best friend, "Mikey, you just fainted, I have to tell your brothers."

Mikey's eyes bulged out of his head as he tried to process the information previously given to him. His brothers couldn't know, this was his fight and his fight alone.

"Wait Oliver," he grabbed his friends arm weakly, "I've got it all handled, I'll tell my brothers once I get home." He gave the puppy eyes on top. Oliver only looked at him as he hesitated, his expression was unreadable.

"I don't know Mikey, what if it's serious?" he questioned.

Mikey sighed, "Oliver I'm managing my health, not you. I'm not a baby."

"I'm just worried!"

"Well stop worrying! Mikey snapped, his whole world spun as he groaned, "Sorry Oliver, I'm just going to head home." He got up on unsteady feet and walked away with the familiar feeling of dread.

Lately, snapping at people had sadly become a common thing, even his brothers noticed. Their worried glances and improvised movie nights showed just how weak Mikey was. Not that he would admit that. But in theory, how he hadn't collapsed in front of his brothers was a miracle on its own. If his brothers saw…Mikey shuddered at the thought. His brothers would freak, and that was a huge understatement.

They would drag him to the nearest hospital, and then he would have to endure hours of needles rudely being stuck in him…he couldn't have that. That wasn't even the worst part, Mikey didn't know how long he could go without his brothers noticing the dire situation.

It was getting harder to breathe every passing day, not to mention the black dots always implanting themselves in the young teens eyes. He had at least passed out four times in the past week alone, now it was five.

Mikey weakly walked back to his house; each step felt like pure agony. Sweat glistened on his forehead as his knees almost buckled with every step. The sun shined brightly right above him, it's deadly rays snapping his energy away in almost an instant. Cars passed him leaving a small breeze of wind, in which Mikey wished he could indulge himself in.

If only he had a car, an air-conditioned car…. that sounded like pure heaven at that moment. Anything sounded like heaven if it meant taking away all the heat on the earth. Snow, that was a nice thought. Popsicles, water, winter, why couldn't it be winter?

"Home," Mikey mumbled as sweat dripped down to his brow. His head pounded, his feet hurt, everything hurt. He guessed that was from the heat, and not that he hadn't eaten anything in over five days. Not even a orange slice. He had concluded that orange slice was only making him fatter.

Fat

Oh, how Mikey hated that word. That single word was the thing causing him to feel like death at the moment. But it was worth it, he would become skinny once more.

It took him an extra twenty minutes to get home, but once he stepped inside, he let out a sigh of relief. It was also then that the delightful smell of chicken reached his nostrils. He gagged and ran upstairs, food these days hadn't smelled good, his stomach rejected it.

He quickly dashed into bed and covered himself, exhaustion took over him in an instant. He sighed and fell into a dreamless slumber, not even stirring when he felt one of his brothers stroke his forehead and grimace.

"Leo, we have a problem," Donnie whispered.

Chapter Text

"How hot is he?" Leo whispered as he kept a careful eye on his youngest brother. His eyebrows knitted with pure concern, Mikey was tossing and turning along with occasional gasps of pain.

Donnie sighed, "Luckly not as bad as it could be, but he's still running a low-grade fever."

"And it will be gone in the morning?"

"I don't know," Donnie got up, "but most likely. Why do you ask?"

Leo shifted his focus unto his younger brother, "I was hoping to keep you guys all home tomorrow for some extra training, crime rates have been skyrocketing lately."

The genius brother frowned, "Leo…"

"If it gets out of hand, we will pull Mikey out," Leo said with a tiny hint of concern, "Trust me, I don't want my baby bro to pass out on us."

"Then why?"

"I just…I…don't know," Leo stammered.

"I get it Leo; you just want to find out what Mikey's been hiding."

The eldest brother nodded his head, biting his lip to prevent tears from falling. What was Mikey hiding? It wasn't highly unusual for the baby of the family to hide secrets, but a secret this big must be weighing heavily on him. And it crushed Leo that Mikey did it all alone.

They were brothers. They shouldn't have to deal with stuff by themselves. As the eldest brother, Leo felt a huge responsibility to heal his brothers wounds. But what if he couldn't heal this one? What if it was to big?

He walked plopped himself down on Mikeys bed, holding his younger brothers hand tenderly. For some weird reason, he just couldn't make himself let go of his brother, it was almost like Mike would disappear if he let go.

"Leo, you should stay with him tonight," Donnie whispered. He could sense his older brothers pain, and from what he was already feeling, Leo didn't need any more nightmares plaguing his dreams.

Leo gave a small smile and nodded, "I will Don." After much maneuvering, Leo snuggled next to his brother as he held him protectively. Donnie even swore he could see a smile on his younger brothers face. And as much as he wanted to also snuggle up against his brothers, he knew that Leo needed this.

Without him.

And for what it was worth, Donnie would do again. He gave one last smile and walked out of the room, feeling lighter on his feet. In another seven hours, he would see Mikey again, hopefully without a fever.

TMNT

"Mikey, buddy wake up"

Mikey groaned as light infiltrated his eyes, his headache came back in full. He turned his drowsy head to see Leo knelling down next to him.

"5 more minutes," he groaned, swatting away his brothers hand away from his face. But to no anvil did his older brother politely follow his request.

Leo sighed, "Mikey, we have to train."

"But what about school?"

"Your all going to stay home today," Leo stood up, "There's been a lot more crime lately."

Mikey groaned as he painfully lifted himself up from his warm paradise, "So what? We haven't gone on patrol in months."

"Well, that's about to change with the school year starting."

The youngest brother only sighed as he got up and walked towards the dojo. He thought that his older brother was crazy, beyond that even. Training? He even considered taking Leo to the doctors. Nobody, I mean nobody cared enough about crime to let him stay home from school.

His brothers valued education like no other. So, what was truly bothering his older brother? Surely, they hadn't found out yet, Mikey had been hiding it so well.

But what if they did?

He trembled at that thought, his brothers could never find out his secret. Thank goodness for all the baggage clothing he had acquired over the past few weeks. Trudging into the dojo, Mikey tried to keep his head up, but the exhaustion was still plaguing him. Or was it the exhaustion?

Lately, he had been struggling with basic things like standing or sitting. Fatigue was really starting to implant itself into his everyday life. Naps had become a very common thing for him, not that he would like to admit that.

At first, he had been able to go without eating, but after passing out in front of his best friend, he decided that he would allow him a single slice of an orange. The fear of passing out in front of his brothers brough mortal fear to many aspects. Plus, there wasn't to many calories in a single orange slice.

"Gather up team," Leo sternly said as he walked into the dojo. Donnie and Raph both straightened up as their martial arts unforms glued themselves to their chests. Mikey stood up as straight as he could without getting dizzy.

Leo looked at his brothers, but frowned once he laid eyes on his youngest brother, "Mikey, where is your martial arts uniform?"

Mikey looked down to see his brightly colored blue pajamas with moon symbols. His slippers still on as well.

Crap

"I um, well I…" Mikey stammered but shrunk at the glare Leo was giving him, "I…forgot."

Raph chuckled, "Not the first time that's happened."

"Yeah so funny….Raphie" Mikey grinned as he mentally gave himself a high five.

"I told you not to call me that!"

"Opps I forgot, my bad"

"No you didn't Knucklehead!"

"Sorry, did I offend you Raphie?"

"Come here you TWERP!"

"ENOUGH!" Leo declared, his face red with anger, "Both of you get back into formation now."

Raph and Mikey both got back into formation as they glared at each other with false hatred. Donnie only shook his head with disproval.

"Ok, now that we are all here, you must be wondering why I called you all here," Leo said sternly before Raph rudely interrupted him.

"Do you secretly hate us Fearless? Because waking us up at four in the morning is highway robbery!"

"Quiet Raphael, I'm in charge" Leo said calmly.

Raph only growled as he listened to his older brother. There was nothing he could do…yet. His revenge would have to be executed later.

Leo cleared his throat, "Ok team, we are going to start with 50 basic kata's."

The boys nodded as they got into the position. But there as a slight problem, every time Mikey would raise his foot or leg, his world would spin with excessive speed. He almost passed out as he flipped over. His vision was constantly blurred as his breathing consisted of unhealthy gasps of breath.

His legs felt extremely heavy as his head hung with the uttermost dread. He didn't know if he could stand any long nor do any more flips that turned his world upside down. But how could he make up once again another excuse to get out of training? He was pretty sure he had already used every excuse in the book.

That just meant he had to tough it out.

"Mikey, more passion in your katas," Leo pointed out.

More Passion?! Ok Leo, let me pass out for a quick second!

As much as Mikey didn't want to disobey his brother, he just couldn't follow his older brothers request. He could already feel his body shutting down, and with that seconds ticking by, Mikeys legs kept wobbling.

Mikey voice shook, "Leo, can I step out for a quick second? I haven't drank any water today."

His older brother only nodded with a concerned glance but didn't question any further. He turned his attention to his other brothers as Mikey wobbled to the kitchen.

In all reality, he hadn't drinked anything today. So he wasn't technically lying, there was just more to the story that he wasn't telling his brothers. Grabbing a water cup, he walked over to the fridge. But once he went to lift the cup…. he couldn't. His arm felt to weak to lift the cup.

It's fine, I didn't want any water anyway

Mikey sighed as he placed his empty water cup on the table. He couldn't do simple katas or even lift a water cup?! What would he not be able to do next?

And that initial thought scared him greatly. He never intended for these effects, but good things came with great sacrifice. Screw his hunger and thirst. He would be just fine with nothing.

Nothing had no calories or fat; it was a win.

"Mikey, can I talk to you?" Donnie asked walking into the kitchen as his little brother jumped from the sudden appearance.

No

"Sure," Mikey shrugged, leaning against the counter, "What aren't you in training?"

Donnie chuckled at his brothers oblivious nature, "Leo let us out a few hours early. But that's not what I wanted to ask you."

The younger brother tensed, his smile fading. "What is it Don?"

"Well it seems that…."

Please don't say it!

"..you haven't been….."

PLEASE don't say it!

"…eating…"

No no no no no…

"..as much as you used to, or frankly at all."

There it is…. great, just great

Mikey stammered, "Is it wrong that I don't want to eat in front of you," he snapped. But his older brother paid no attention to that. "Mikey.. I don't know what to say but it seems that you don't eat at all anymore. It worries me."

"Well stop worrying! I'm fine!"

"Are you?"

Honestly, Mikey was far from fine. But he wasn't about to admit that. He could be strong; he could control what he ate. He refused to be fat, it was skinny or nothing. His brothers would only interfere with his goal.

"Yes," Mikey replied with false confidence. He winced as he lifted his weight off the counter. The world spun with many colors as he walked over to his older brother. His unsteady legs almost threatened to slip underneath him.

Donnie only stared but didn't elaborate on it, when his little brother was ready to talk to him, Donnie would welcome him with open arms. But that didn't mean he wasn't going to talk to his older brothers about Mikeys sloppy walk or his inability to do simple movements like katas without getting dizzy.

"I'm trusting your word Mikester," Donnie sighed, still not feeling too good about his decision to leave his brother alone. But it had to be done, Mikey was growing up, he needed his own freedom. That also meant making his own decisions.

Mikey nodded his head eagerly as his head swarm with drowsiness. He walked away towards the living room, planning to watch his favorite tv show.

His older brother left him to it as he walked over to the dojo, planning to tell his older brothers everything. Every single word.

Chapter Text

Tick Tock

Tick Tock

Ti-

"Mikey! Get your butt down here down here now!"

The young teen jumped up startled from the sudden burst of noise, his head turned with all the things his brothers could possibly be mad at about him. Which was sadly becoming very common.

His brothers hadn't gotten off his back from their last training session, his weakness in his bones and malnourished stomach started to become very obvious in their terms. And if Mikey happened to tell them that he was ok, it would be a straight out lie.

The past few weeks had become a session of pure misery, his head always hurt with aches while his bones started to become more brittle and weaker. When his brothers were not watching him, he would constantly lie in bed withering in pain.

It was so bad that it even started to scare Mikey, the fear of what could become of him was almost enough to send him to the kitchen for a delicious slice of cake. But the word fat came tumbling into his brain leaving him almost destroyed inside and out.

But one question remained, how long could he keep this up?

"MIKEY!"

Mikey groaned as he lifted himself up from bed, almost immediately pain struck his system with extreme force. He tried to not cringe.

"Coming!" he yelled opening his bedroom door. Every step felt like agony, needles went up his arms. His vision blurred in and out. If anything, he didn't know if he could make it down the stairs. But he couldn't have his brothers on his back.

Walking very slowly, Mikey walked to the entrance of the stairs, his older brother Donnie at the head of the steep stairs.

"It's dinner time," Donnie went on before his brother could disappear again, "AND if you DON'T come to dinner, Leo said that you would be grounded for two weeks."

"Two WEEKS!" Mikey gaped. There was no way that he would even survive two weeks, his brothers worry practically radiated from the walls. "Donnie please…I'm not hungry!"

His older brother only shook his head, "Your never hungry anymore, you need to eat…"

I can hide the food under the table

"..in front of us," Donnie finished

WHAT! Grounding it is then

"I'll take my chances,"

Donnie's face transformed so fast; it almost made the small teen laugh. "You will eat Michelangelo now."

But Mikey only shook his head, full name or not, nothing was going to make him go eat. And in all reality, his brothers probably already knew that.

"For your information Donatello, I already ate," Mikey pursued, his lips stretched up in a tight knot, "I had a large lunch today."

Donnie scoffed, "You mean this lunch?" He held up the filled lunchbox, "For your information Michelangelo, you left this at home."

The young teen huffed, how he managed to forget to take his lunch box was no mystery. His memory skills had slowly been decreasing day by day, maybe that's why his brothers probably almost have his whole situation figured out.

He was lucky if he remembered to put his shoes on before he went to school.

"I bought school lunch."

"Mikey, we've never given you money for school lunch."

Mikey was about to give in when he remembered the word fat. There was no way he could afford to eat a meal so full of calories and fat. Not to mention that his brothers would also make him eat dessert, chocolate cake was too rich in sugar for him to even attempt that thought.

"Mikey…." Donnie chose his words carefully, "I'm worried, we're all worried. Please let us help you, I don't know what caused you to stop eating but it's getting unhealthy."

"Thanks for reminding me," Mikey muttered as he started to slowly walk away. There was nothing his older brother could say that would persuade him to eat.

"Mikey if you don't eat, I will physically come up there and force you to eat!" Donnie threatened.

This stopped the young teen in his tracks, if Donnie made a threat, he would stick to it. His older brother always had a way with threatening tones.

Mikey sighed, "Fine, but only a few pieces of dinner."

Donnie nodded, at least it was a start. If anything, taking one step at a time seemed like the best approach.

His younger brother begun to walk over to the stairs and trudge down them when he felt a searing pain in his head, his heartbeat rapidly as stars danced in his eyes.

"Donnie…I don'-"

Mikey never got to finish that sentence as he fell forward, his head set to hit the corner of a sharp stair. Donnie leaped into action; his hand caught Mikeys head just in time.

"MIKEY!" He yelled as tears fell down his cheeks. His younger brother looked horrible, bags under his eyes, his breathing off.

He needed medical attention immediately. But his shock came in full, his mind fuzzy. He only faintly heard footsteps enter the stairway, but he couldn't quite recognize them.

"Donnie…. what happened?" a voice asked full of fear and worry.

But Donnie only stared.

Stared at his younger brothers half-dead body.

Chapter Text

"Donnie…. what happened?"

But Donnie only stared instead of giving a single response. His mind rattled as thoughts of worser things went through his worried-stricken mind. Hands shaking, the older brother didn't know what to do. This had never happened before, and God forbid, it actually happens again.

Fuzz wrapped around his body, pulling him away from any light. Reality no longer in his reach of provision. It was as if his body was in a state of paralysis, his functions no longer listening to his every command.

Only segments of single words could be understood.

"..D.o…..ie! M…..k…..ey…..no…br….e…t..h..g!"

Somebody shook his shoulders, but he didn't give a single ounce of attention, someone slapped his face, but it didn't sting, his brother hugged him but there was no warmth. Only pure coldness that spread like wildfire throughout his entire body, shutting down everything.

"DONNIE, SNAP OUT OF IT MAN!" Somebody yelled, slapping his cheeks more aggressively than before. The genius brother shook his head vigorously, he hated feeling so helpless.

"Donnie..please….Mikey needs us," Leo whispered softly, his voice cracking with pure emotion. Donnie looked up at his half-dead brother, he didn't know if he could make it throughout Mikey's recovery, all the emotions and devesting things he would see…. but it wasn't about him.

It was about Mikey.

The genius brother looked up, "Sorry guys."

His brothers gave him a sympathetic look, it wasn't hard to understand the context and severity of the situation.

"LEO, DONNIE! MIKEY'S NOT BREATHING!"

The two brothers turned around harshly, not even wasting a moment to ponder what to do next. Leo quickly ran over as he grabbed Mikey, carrying him to the car. Not even wasting a single minute, the eldest brother took off to the hospital with his two younger brothers in tote.

"Please be ok," Donnie sobbed quietly as he stroked his pale younger brothers cheeks. But something occurred to him.

"Raph," Donnie leaned over, "Didn't you say that Mikey wasn't breathing?"

"Yes"

Crud

"Leo, we need to pull over right now," Donnie said sternly. His older brother only gave one glance, "Donnie, we can't pull over! Mikey DYING back there!"

Donnie growled, "He's already dead! Mike isn't breathing, there is no way he'll make to the hospital!"

That comment made Leo clench his eyes, this couldn't be happening! If Donnie could prolong his younger brothers life, it was well worth it. Leo pulled over; his younger brother didn't waste a single moment as he undid his seat belt. He opened the car door.

Grabbing Mikey carefully, he laid his younger brother on the concrete. "30 chest compressions, two breaths," he muttered to himself as he begun the chest compressions.

"Arms parrel to the elbow, knees parrel to the legs. Back straight, flat surface."

Donnie did 30 chest compressions, moving on the breaths, Mikeys stomach raised up from the ground but didn't stay that way. Back to the start. Donnie did two rounds but didn't give up.

"Come on Mike!"

After what seemed like an eternity, Mikey took a shaky breath, he groaned from all the radiating pain coming from his ribs. And practically anywhere else.

His limbs protested as his older brother picked up back up, gently setting him on the car seat. The car picked up speed, clearly ignoring the regulated speed limit. But that didn't matter, it was a life death situation.

A stupid speeding ticket wouldn't matter.

"Leo hurry! We're losing him!"

The eldest brother picked up his speed as he hanged over 70 miles per hour on the main street. There wasn't much he could do; it wouldn't help his cause if he killed somebody else due to the cars speed.

Leo made a hard right, "I'm trying Raph! But if I go any faster, I'll most likely hit a pedestrian!"

And that was the end of that argument.

But another agreement almost started because of all the traffic lining the streets of New York.

Figures

"Ani…if we don't hurry, Mikeys not going to come home with us ever again," Donnie whimpered. The tears in his younger brothers eyes made the eldest rethink his strategy.

They couldn't call an ambulance, as much as they wanted to, the Hamoto brothers simply couldn't afford it. But the traffic hording the streets was a problem.

Leo unblocked his seat belt, "We'll have to run on foot."

The two younger brothers nodded as they lifted their brother from the warm cushions. Carefully Raph held his brother bridal style and took off running lightly.

"Leo…I'm scared," Donnie mumbled as he ran lagging behind only by a few inches. Leo looked over, "Me to Don, but he'll make it. He has to."

But the underlining fact still laid there. Like black on white, it was visible and noticeable. Their brother would either lose his life or come home safe.

The brothers ran with all their might and will, only having to stop a few times to make sure their youngest brother hadn't stopped breathing. Luckily, there wasn't such incident. Even as sweat dripped down their exhausted brows, they didn't stop running.

How could they?

No matter the speed, Leo found himself constantly looking for familiar landmarks that indicated the hospital was near. But to no such luck did he succeed, well…..that was until Raph called out.

"LEO, DONNIE, THE HOSPITAL IS AHEAD!"

Donnie immediately picked up speed, but Leo didn't. Now that the huge hospital loomed over the sidewalk, the eldest brother felt a prick of fear.

This was really happening.

His youngest brother was really unconscious and near deaths door. Mikey really did stop breathing for a few minutes. His brother could easily die within seconds.

Where did the horrible facts stop? And why did Leo feel so powerless and helpless? His youngest brother was dying, there was nothing he could do…..and he hated it. Despised it.

"Leo! Hurry!" Raph called out.

The eldest brother tried to increase his speed but found it almost impossible. It felt like the whole world had come crashing down on his shoulders, his knees almost buckled.

Faster Leo!

One step of agony

LEO!

Another step of torture

Leo kept moving forward, but his breathing was the only thing increasing. Looking over at the hospital, all the windows seemed to glare at him. There were so many windows…Mikey would reside in one of them.

Mikey would…

His breathing turned into hyperventilating, his legs into Jello. Donnie turned around as he was about to call his eldest brothers name, but in that state Leo was in…. he was lucky if he got towards the door. But Mikey didn't have that kind of time.

He was about to go drag Leo but when his brother dropped to his knees sobbing, Donnie knew that his older brother needed time.

"Raph, take Mikey inside!" Donnie yelled ahead, his older brother nodded and ran into the emergency room. While the younger brother rushed over to help Leo up.

Leo sagged against his small form, "Ani…just breathe," Donnie soothed. His older brother took a small breath and then another.

Keep breathing

"We're almost there,"

Keep breathing

"Three more steps Leo"

Keep breathing

"We're here"

KEEP breathing

Leo looked around at the emergency room, the lights penetrated his eyes. He immediately walked over the chairs, not trusting himself enough to stand. His younger brother followed suit, scared about what Raph was going to come back and say.

"Hey Leo," he scooted closer, "Are you ok?"

Of course he knew the answer. But he wanted to hear the answer from Leo.

Leo held back his tears, cradling his arms, "No Donnie, I'm far from it." He replied softly. His voice wavered with every slight movement; fear implanted itself deeply within his heart. Donnie didn't make him elaborate; it was obvious Leo hurt for his youngest brother.

Mikey was their glue, a glue that needed to be protected by his older three brothers. If anything ever happened to Mikey, it tore them apart. A structure wasn't any good without its foundation. A house crashed without its foundation.

Mikey was their foundation.

And the effects of that fundamental piece gone, already had the young brothers in shambles. It was something they couldn't live without.

"Donnie…Leo…,"

The young boys looked up to see Raph leaning against the hospital walls. He looked extremely pale, his features shook. "Guys, Mikey's in emergency surgery."

"Why?" Donnie asked with panic. He got up and walked over, setting a hand on Raph's shoulder. The older brother only cried.

"His functions started to shut down," Raph sobbed.

That didn't come as a surprise.

"It'll be ok Raph; the surgeons know what they are doing."

Hopefully they did, if Mikey were to pass on…..his family wouldn't be able to move on. That was a fact that couldn't be denied.

Donnie lead Raph over to the chairs, "We just have to wait."

TMNT

It had been about nine hours when the brothers finally heard some news.

"Please be good," Donnie whispered over and over again. His brothers walked beside him, clearly exhausted. It had been a hard night, mostly because Leo and Raph were extremely emotional while Donnie served as the therapist. But eventually he would crack as well.

"Are you the Hamato boys?" The doctor asked when the boys walked up to him. The brothers nodded, but none of them gave a verbal response.

The doctor cleared his throat, "I'm Doctor Harz, your file says that Leo Hamato is your guardian, is this true?"

Once again, the brothers only nodded.

"Where is he? I must locate him before we move on any further."

Leo stepped forward, "I'm Leo Hamato. Is my brother alright?"

"Well…he….um" Harz cleared her throat again, she hated this part, "At the start of surgery, we put him under anesthetic, but once he took him off, we realized that his brain waves weren't responding. We gave him a few good hours, but his brain still isn't responding."

"Which means…." Leo questioned with his worry extending each passing second.

Harz sighed, "We put him in the PCU."

"PCU…that's where critical people get sent," Donnie whispered. But nobody heard him.

"Look boys, I'm not going to put this lightly. Your brother….."

Please be ok Mikey

"…is in a….."

Please be ok, please be ok, please be ok

"..coma.."

Leo stopped breathing

Donnie started to sob uncontrollably

And Raph just fainted

Chapter Text

It had been over three hours since the Homato family heard about their youngest member being in a coma. That single word had devasted them, destroyed them, and made Raph pass out. Due to the red-masked brother being out cold, the doctors dragged him for tests, and then some rest.

Overall, they confirmed that Raph had gone into shock. But Donnie was far worse. He had screamed bloody munder and sobbed continuously on the floor until the doctors were forced to remove him from the hospital.

Leo drove him home, and now was currently gathering up stuff for Mikey's hospital room. The eldest brother told Donnie to go to bed, but the younger brother didn't want any of it.

*Cue the flashback*

"I want Mikey to feel as comfortable as possible," Donnie reasoned. But Leo shook his head, "Donnie, you need rest."

"Leo, let me do something!" Donnie sobbed, "This helps me overcome my worry. Please Leo…I need this."

Leo looked at his younger brother, Donnie looked so broken, fragile and without rationality. The news had crushed them, and without question, brought a sense of impending doom. But everyone needed an outlet.

And this was Donnie's

"Fine, I guess you can help," Leo sighed. Donnie smiled wide and gave Leo a bone-crushing hug.

"Thanks Leo! You wouldn't regret it!"

Maybe it was that his younger brother was happy, or there just wasn't anything to lose. But Leo didn't care either way, he needed the help. He couldn't do it alone.

*End Flashback*

"Do you think he'll like this?" Donnie asked holding up an orange teddy bear, "He used to say he was too old for it."

"Nah he'll like it," Leo replied as he grabbed a few piles of blankets. He chose the most comfortable ones, Mikey needed warmth more than ever. And maybe Mikey wouldn't feel so alone when he could reach over and smell home from miles away.

Donnie reached over and grabbed the lunchbox. "Huh, it's still filled. It's crazy to think that only a few hours ago, I was lecturing him on not eating his lunch."

"He'll get better Don, I promise."

"But what if…. he doesn't?"

Leo didn't know how to respond to that. In all fairness, if they lost Mikey, there wasn't a purpose to family anymore. Mikey was their light, their heart, and the only thing that kept Leo alive when he felt like giving up. They couldn't lose Mikey….it just wasn't something they could afford.

"Don't think like that, Mikey will get better. We just have to have faith." Leo responded. He clutched the orange teddy bear tightly as he placed it inside a cardboard box, the blankets went on top along with a few pillows.

Leo asked Donnie to look around for anything else, the younger brother agreed and left the room to check their rooms for anything Mikey might like. While Donnie was gone, Leo allowed a few tears to fall. It was a miracle that he hadn't broken down yet, and he was struggling to keep that up. It was as if a dam was slowly breaking, water seeping though the cracks until it eventually broke.

Except unlike any other time, Mikey his sealant wasn't around to seal up the cracks breaking down his composure. He had to be strong. But as a few tears came rushing down, his dam broke.

Openly sobbing, his heart clutched, his hands shook. It wasn't fair, IT WASN'T FAIR! Everything was so perfect only yesterday, but all it took for was one day for it to all fall apart.

And to break his promise.

*Sad Flashback*

"Leo! Mikey's taking his first step!"

Leo raced down the hall and watched Mikey take one step, he giggled as he took another.

"Come on Mikey, come to Raphie," Raph encouraged.

Mikey took another step; he was only a few steps away from Raph. His smile grew with each passing moment, he was so close!

But then he fell. Hard.

Landing on his stomach, Mikey almost immediately begun to cry. He was so close…but failed. Even to a three-year-old, the young child felt so hurt.

Donnie got up, but Leo pushed him back down. "Let me try," he whispered. Walking over to his younger brother, Leo picked up Mikey and set him on his lap.

The younger toddler melted into his brother, crying on Leo's chest. Leo looked at Mike, he lifted his head.

"Hey Mikey? Can you hear me?" Leo asked.

The youngest brother looked up with tears still streaming down his face.

"Did you make it to Raphie?"

Mikey shook his small head.

"Did you make it to Don?"

Once again, the young toddler shook his head.

"Did you fail?"

Mike didn't know how to respond.

"The answer is no Mikey, you didn't fail. You won!" Leo said happily, "And you know what?"

After a moment of silence, Leo went on.

"If you ever fall, I promise to always catch you."

*End Sad Flashback*

Mikey had fallen, and Leo didn't catch him. He had failed. But this was more…this wasn't just about taking a single step. It was about life and death.

Leo didn't realize he had begun to hyperventilate, or that the door opened, and a pair of hands wrapped around his torso.

"It's not ok Leo, but it will be," Donnie whispered in his ear, "You're not alone."

"I know" Leo voice cracked with pure emotion, "I've failed!"

More sobs escaped his throat, "I promised to catch him, but I DROPPED him! I'm horrible!"

Donnie held his brother tight as his body shook. "Your wrong Leo, we've both failed him."

Their situation was far from being ok, having an emotional crisis was only part of their problems. Their brothers survival was the second part. Raph being unconscious was the third part. The list could go on.

"Let's go," Donnie said softly, he picked up the box of stuff while supporting Leo. Walking over to the car, Leo didn't even attempt to sit in the drivers seat, he wasn't mentally stable for that yet.

Donnie drove them to the hospital and checked them in. Donnie went to check on Raph while Leo went to the ICU. It wasn't long before Leo stood in front of room 1487.

He opened the door and walked inside, with the box securely in his hands.

This next part was going to be really hard.

Chapter Text

Oliver always knew that he wasn't made for things like 'tough friendship', but it wasn't until he felt the weird sensation in his chest that he started to second guess his theories.

That relating to his concern for his best friend.

Oliver wasn't an idiot; he knew what was going on. And no amount of pretending could ever steer him clear of his assumptions. But his patience was almost up. Frankly, Mikey didn't eat lunch, and that pissed him off greatly.

His best friend was starving himself

And what was he doing? Eating Mikeys food. But he couldn't just tell Mikey that he knew everything, that would only add more problems.

So, what could he do? Watching his friend starve himself any longer was out of the question. Same with giving up his own food. That would mean that he didn't eat.

So maybe going and talking to Mikey in private was probably the best option. And that's what he decided to do.

Well…after he got some sleep.

TMNT

Beep...beep…beep

Oliver groaned as he turned over. Today was the day. The day that his best friend could either hate him or love him for bringing up very concerning facts.

But it had to happen

"Oliver! Come down for breakfast!" His mother called loudly from downstairs. The young teen only groaned and pushed himself up. His back ached from all the soreness aggravating his body at the moment. But he pushed past it with a large sigh.

Sitting up, Oliver grabbed his slippers and stuck them on his cold feet. He grabbed his phone and started to head down the stairs. But paused when he saw that Mikey hadn't texted him at least once in the past 24 hours.

Mikey always texted at least every few hours that passed by.

'Maybe there's a valid reason', Oliver tried to tell himself. But his gut was telling him something different. Something was wrong, and he knew it. But half of him still kept trying to say that he was over paranoid.

But it wasn't the right time to panic. School was going to start in less than 30 minutes, plus Mikey would be at school, so that meant he could kill two birds with one stone.

Opening his phone, Oliver sent a text to his best friend.

Hey Mikester, see you at school! – O

But when Mikey didn't respond, Oliver (being his paranoid self) decided to send another text to remind his best bud.

Mikey? Are you gonna respond? – O

Hello? – O

Your worrying me dude – O

I gotta go eat breakfast, you better respond by the time I get back. BRB! – O

So maybe it was more than one text, but worry was quickly filling up Olivers system. Mikey had always kept his phone near, and without any delay, Mikey always responded within seconds.

It was weird that his best bud had suddenly gone MIA. Which was rather unsettling.

For some reason, Oliver's appetite just disappeared. Eating was the last thing on his mind. Picking up his pace, Oliver shouted to his mom that he didn't want to eat and ran out the door. Not minding the traffic lining the street, he ran across the street.

Sweat dripped down his brow as he hyperventilated. Worry coursed through his veins. And for a moment, Oliver didn't care if he got hit by a car or injured for that matter. Mikey was the only thing filling his mind.

His best friend always answered his texts, even when his phone was taken away. Mike's phone was practically his baby, and nothing could stop him from texting his friends.

The only time that he wouldn't respond was if something went really wrong.

'Everything is fine, I bet Mikey will be at the front doors waving and smiling' Oliver told himself. But that didn't stop him from running any faster.

Taking a sharp turn right, Oliver ran across the crosswalk and stopped in front of the school. Panting, the young teen looked around but didn't see his best friend anywhere in sight. He grabbed his phone and almost chocked when he saw a text come back.

Hey Oliver, this is Leo. Something happened, and Mikey wouldn't be for a few weeks – M

Oliver was almost scared to ask, but to soothe his impending doom, he felt his fingers brush against his phone.

What happened? – O

He's fine right? – O

Oliver….Mikey's in the hospital - M

Oliver dropped his phone and collapsed unto his knees. Tears immediately begun to form in his eyes and shuddered with each sob. He couldn't quite grasp it; his best friend was in the hospital….his best friend was in the hospital.

Mikey could die

"No No NO!" Oliver yelled; his fists hit the pavement repeatedly.

He didn't care that everyone at school was watching, or that he was embarrassing himself in front of his friends.

His whole world had rocked, his gut had been punched. The dude that was his whole world, and light, was fighting for his life in the hospital.

Or at least thats how much Oliver knew. Mikey could be fine and just in the hospital for a broken bone, or concussion. But something in Olivers gut told him something far worse.

He hadn't realized how much he was crying until big bulky arms wrapped themselves around Oliver. A figure picked him up and started to walk.

"Oliver bud? I'm taking you home," Charlie said.

Oliver didn't give much of an indication that he was listening. He didn't care if Charlie took him home, or if he failed every test that day. He just wanted this nightmare to end.

TMNT

Leo took a deep breath and opened the door. Almost immediately, he wished that he didn't. His poor younger brother was attached to a lot of tubes and machines.

One of those was clearly life support.

If only he had stopped it earlier, he knew that Mikey had been hiding something from him. But he didn't imagine that it was this big.

Placing the box down, Leo walked over to Mikey and stroked his forehead. Which ironically was the only place where a tube hadn't been inserted into his brothers' skin. Leo felt tears pricking his eyes.

"I failed Mikey, big time. Please don't die for my mistake," He sobbed. If Mikey were to die, it would absolutely crush him. Not just him though, it would crush everyone.

But his younger brother only remained in his unconscious state. It just wasn't the same without Mikey laughing and planning absurd pranks. Maybe this was just one big prank….

If only

Mikey wasn't faking, and Leo couldn't stand to see him in his condition. It was literally a life-or-death situation.

"You're the best brother I could have asked for," Leo said softly, still stroking Mikey's forehead. "I understand why Father loved you the most. Your kind-hearted spirit is something that I've been blessed to grow up with….please don't leave me little brother. I need you."

"Please"

Chapter Text

Donnie stared at Mikey; with all he was worth. Watching the heart machine, the white covers covering his frail younger brother's body….it was all just to much for him to handle. If only he had done something about it sooner, then maybe his brother wouldn't be in this situation. They all had their doubts about Mikey's 'healthy' diet but pushing it to another day had just sounded easier.

Oh boy were they wrong.

Now they had to pay the consequences, which were well worthy of death. Not that any of them would mention that, or frankly, accept it. What made it even worse was the fact that their precious outoto's life was in the hands of some stranger that they barely just met.

In simpler terms, it was out of their control. Which sucked greatly, beyond anything that they could have possibly imagined. Which made it even worse then it was.

Donnie sighed and looked over at the brown box sitting on the chair. Leo hadn't had the guts to unload it yet, but that was to be expected. When Raph had woken up and was released, Leo took the first chance he got to leave the dank and deary room. So, he asked Donnie to stay while he took Raph home.

And even though the young teen hadn't wanted to say yes, he knew that Leo needed a moment to process everything. It really didn't matter about how he felt, he couldn't even have begun to imagine the weight on his oldest brothers' shoulders. It was the least he could've done.

Now that it was just him and his younger brother, Donnie opened the box and peeked inside. There were a few small blankets and books, but what struck him on the head was the small orange teddy bear sitting on top of everything. Sure, he had been joking when he told Leo he should bring it, but maybe he hadn't really been serious about the whole 'kid' thing.

To be fair, Donnie had a similar item sitting on his bed, same with his older brothers. It was a gift from their father, it was given when they were just small children. Right about when Mikey was born. Of course, they all had a moment where they said that they were to old for it, but in their hearts, they never really meant it.

Donnie placed the orange teddy bear by his younger brothers' arms. "I thought you might like this," he said softly, "maybe it might bring dad here, we could all really use his love right now."

But there wasn't a response.

"You know…" Donnie sat down, "Life's really tough right now, and I guess that I never realized how much of a light you were in my life."

The silence that filled the room was killing him, slowly. He just wanted Mikey to speak…just one word and he would be satisfied.

"You're pretty important," Donnie whispered, tears fell down his cheeks, "That's why you're the youngest. God must've known what he was doing, because Mikey, your pretty darn special."

And he meant it, every word of it.

That bought him a moment of peace, a peace that he knew he couldn't take for granted. The trouble had only started, and Donnie feared that it would only get worse.

"Stay strong for me little bro, I'm really trying to stay strong as well. But….I can't. Seeing you like this makes me want to sob and cry," Donnie wiped away a stray tear, "Which I guess is ironic; I'm already crying. But in all seriousness…."

Donnie reached over and grabbed Mikey's hand. "Please don't give up, not for me or anyone. I need you, and you need us."

He squeezed his brother's limp hand. Shudders were heard as the genius brother struggled to keep it together, but it was fruitless. Donnie was going to cry, and maybe even more than that.

"Donnie?"

Donnie let go of Mikey's hand and stood up, he turned around and saw Leo standing in the doorway.

"What is it, Leo?"

"The doctor wants to talk to us." Leo said softly. Donnie nodded and got up; he followed his eldest brother into the sterile doctor's room.

"Please sit," The doctor gestured towards two chairs which the young teenagers accepted. "I'm Docter Autumn. I see that you're the Hamoto boys, is that correct?"

"Yes madam," Leo replied, he reached over and grabbed his brother's hand with the intent of comforting. But nothing could have eased Donnie's worries.

"Your brother Michealangelo isn't in a good state, as much as I regret to say. And although this is no easy topic to talk about, we need to discuss long-term care."

Leo bit his lip. "Long-term care?"

"Yes," Autumn replied, "Patients in the ICU often have a long recovery period. This is no exception for your brother. Quite frankly, he was quite lucky that he has survived this long."

"What kind of care are we talking about?"

"Sadly, medications aren't a reliable source, but when your brother does wake up, we will have introduce foods slowly. And then we will also introduce our newer version of psychological therapy."

"So, therapy?"

"Yes."

Leo took a deep breath and tried to process everything, but nothing could've prepared him for this. All these big words sounded absolutely terrifying and the fact that a highly classified medical professional was telling him this was even scarier.

Donnie squeezed his hand, trying to bring his brother back to earth. "So, he'll live…right?" Donnie asked.

Autumn sighed and looked down at her bland brown desk. "Honestly kids…" She looked at the teens with a sorrowful eye, "I don't know, he's in the state of life or death. It's up to him now."

Great

"But you'll keep trying right?"

"Of course," Autumn gestured, "We won't let Michealangelo go without a fight."

The young boys nodded their heads, if they could trust anyone, it would be Autumn and her team. It seemed that the young doctor cared a lot for her patients, which felt reliving on multiple levels.

"How much will it cost?" Donnie asked softy. Leo looked over, stunned that he hadn't thought about that himself.

"Well, it would average around a few thousand dollars. Although, the exact amount hasn't been determined yet."

"Ok," Leo sighed, relieved that something was going his way for once, "I'll send a check in a few days."

When it came to money, the Hamoto boys didn't struggle very much. With Leo being a nurse and their father's fortune, they had more than enough money to spare.

But they didn't spend it freely, instead the money was saved for occasions like this. Where money was the extremely vital and would be needed in large amounts.

"I hope it isn't an inconvenience," Autumn said quietly, "I hate to see families struggle like this. Especially yours."

"It's not an inconvenience, in fact, it's the only thing that's gone right today." Leo responded.

"Well...I think that's everything. I'll be sure to update you if anything happens. Good or bad."

Leo stood up and shook her hand. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Docter Autumn. Hopefully we'll cross paths again."

Autumn smiled. "I bet we will, many times."

Then, Leo and Donnie took their leave. They walked out in the hallway and faced each other. Leo's face was soft and caring, while Donnie….he didn't last long. Breaking down in tears, Donnie sobbed into his older brother's chest as Leo held him protectively.

"I miss him already," Donnie sobbed, his voice cracking with pure emotion.

"Me to," Leo said softly. "Me to."

Chapter Text

Raph knew pain.

As a car mechanic, there were plenty of times where he had happened to get hurt. But Raph had never known this kind of pain.

He hated it.

He hated how it made him cry, and sob with gut retching aches. He hated how his brothers had a new-found kind of anxiety every day. Like Mikey would somehow take his last breath and their family wouldn't be whole.

If Raph was being honest, they wouldn't ever be whole again without their youngest brother bringing his ray of sunshine into their lives. Mikey had always been their rock, their foundation. But what does one do when their foundation cracks?

This isn't some situation that he can fix with a wretch, ratchet, or new engine. The whole thing was out of their hands now, which felt heart-wrenching. At any moment, their sweet angel could take its last blissful breath and they wouldn't be able to say goodbye.

It wasn't even the fear that plagued the older teen, it was the fact that he might have to say goodbye. Raph sucked at goodbyes. To put it frankly, his whole family did. That was a reason why their father's death had been harder than it should've been.

But at least Leo and Donnie had each other.

Raph had never truly connected with those two, only the youngest, who seemed to intrude when he was the most angry at something or someone. Though, Raph was never mad. How could he be? His innocent brother was only trying to help to his best ability. And for that, Mikey was Raph's rock.

Or used to be his rock.

If Mikey passed, Raph might just kill himself as well. Because a world without a sun simply didn't survive, and in his terms, he lived in his younger brother's world. He would die without a sun.

The doctors did try, and still were. But Raph didn't want to get involved, he just wanted to lay in bed all day and dream about the days that seemed the simplest. Because at that moment, those memories brought joy.

Nothing else did.

Leo would say that he was depressed, and Raph would be a fool if he said he wasn't. But it didn't matter if he was experiencing a mental illness because that didn't stop the fear. The fear that coursed through his veins, making him shake with the feeling of being extremely uncomfortable even though he was. Tears were often frequent, his pillowcase often had to be dried out due to the abundant amount.

But Raph wasn't sorry about that.

He was hurting, and not in the same way Donnie and Leo were. Again, they had each other. Raph had no one. He had every right to cry, to sob, and continually dwell on the idea of the worst-case scenario. That never helped though, simply, Raph couldn't be helped.

He laid in his bed, sobbing as he rubbed his hands on the bed sheet repeatedly. Hyperventilating, Raph enclosed himself in his own depressive realm, and somehow imagined a world without anyone who cared about him in it.

TMNT

It had been almost a week since Mikey had slipped into his everlasting coma. His brothers were a wreck, Leo hadn't left the hospital in days, Donnie tried to distract himself with little trinkets, but there simply wasn't any joy coming from it.

Raph…he was very depressed. Rarely came out of his room, and if he did, it was usually to go to the bathroom, or…sadly, make a new mark on his skin. He was taking it hard, barely eating, or drinking, and slipping into an even deeper depression.

Autumn tried to the best she could, but Mikey never responded to her exercise.

Life wasn't going very well. And the chances of Mikey waking up ever again decreased with every passing day.

It wasn't until Saturday that Leo decided to come home for a few days. His brothers needed him, especially now. He walked up to his car and started to drive home. Memories filled his head about the last time he had used his car.

It was the day Mikey had collapsed.

Leo shook his head, trying to clear out his noggin. Now wasn't the time to panic, Mikey would be ok, Donnie and Raph would be ok.

Everything would be ok

It wasn't long before Leo pulled up to their apartment. He got out of his car and walked up the steps. Opening the door, he saw that there wasn't anyone at home. Which was weird considering that it wasn't a school day, and none of them had the guts to come back to one.

"Raph? Donnie?" Leo yelled.

Silence came back in full. The eldest just shrugged and walked up the stairs towards the bathroom. He hadn't gone at the hospital and was bursting. Reaching the bathroom, Leo turned the door handle and opened the door.

He looked up and gasped. Sitting on the toilet seat was Raph…with a razor in one hand and a bleeding wrist on the other. (A/N Raph's wrist is bloody, he is not holding a bloody wrist. Sorry for the confusion.) Raph looked up and dropped the bloody razor on the ground, his face was twisted into more of a shocked/petrified look.

Except in Leo's eyes, he looked more depressed and alone.

"Raph?" Leo whispered; he took a small step forward.

Leo went slow, approaching Raph like he was a scared animal that could run at any second. But to his luck, Raph didn't run. Instead, the red-masked teen cried, holding his head in his hands.

"Raph…why?" Leo asked softly. He had reached his younger brother and sat down on the ground next to him.

"Because…" Raph looked up with a tear-stained face, "I'm scared Leo, really scared."

Leo sighed. "We all are."

"But it's different for you Leo! You have Donnie, you two are practically inseparable. But me? I have no one. Mikey was the only person who valued me for who I was."

"We all know that you are loved Raph," Leo got up and hugged his younger brother, "I love you so much, and I'm sorry you felt this way. But I promise you that Mikey wouldn't give up. He's to arrogant."

Raph sobbed as he clung unto his brother. Truthfully, he needed help. But he wasn't just about to let all the spotlight fall on him. His condition could be pushed back.

"Raph?"

Leo brought his younger brothers chin up. "I know this is scary, but it's something that we can't control. We can't let it control us."

"Together?" Raph asked, his voice sounding way to scratchy for anyone's liking.

Leo smiled and hugged his brother tightly. "Together."

He let go of the hug and walked over the cabinet, he opened it and found some bandages. Tossing it to Raph, the younger teen undid the roll and wrapped his wrists.

"Thank you for not freaking out Leo. It really mean's a lot."

"You're welcome Otouto. I know that you're scared, and frankly, I am to. But promise me you'll never do this to yourself again." Leo said sternly.

His younger brother nodded.

"Ok, great. Now that we have got that out of the way, I need you to pack clothes for Sunday. You're staying with me at the hospital tonight and tomorrow."

"Just Sunday? What about next week?"

Leo sighed. "I have to go back to work on Monday."

Raph looked over sadly, knowing that Leo wanted to do anything than go back to work. He looked up at his eldest brother. "Are you sure you're ok with that?"

The blue-masked brother shook his head. "I'm not but my patients need me."

With Leo being a nurse, it would hopefully keep his mind off his brother all day. Plus, he didn't work to late every night.

"They are lucky, you know that, Leo?" Raph said softly.

Leo looked over. "I don't know about that. I'll be in a mood for these next few weeks."

"Leo…our own little brother is in a coma right now. You have every right to be in a "mood". But if you don't give up on me, or Donnie, or Mikey, you're not doing anything wrong. I need you Leo, please don't give up on me or our family."

"I won't" Leo whispered bowing his head down.

Raph gave a small smile and stood up. He walked over and gave his older brother a tight embrace. Luckily, Leo returned it in full.

"Don't forget about yourself Leo, we don't need you collapsing as well."

The eldest chuckled. "How can I possibly collapse when I'm surrounded by my amazing two brothers?"

Their embrace lasted for as long as they could count. It wasn't too short or long, but rather the perfect span of time.

After they pulled away, Leo looked around.

"Where's Donnie" he asked.

Raph smiled sadly. "He went to Jack in the box and got him and Mikey's usual and took it to the hospital for dinner."

"But Mikey can't eat it."

"I know, but it makes him feel better."

Jack in the box had always been Donnie's and Mikey's favorite. For as long as Leo could remember, those two always got it when they hung out with each other. It was very sentimental.

"Well, let's go in the morning. I'll stay here tonight, let Donnie have his moment."

Raph smiled and nodded, knowing that Leo was finally allowing himself time to rest and relax.

"Sounds good. I'll make dinner."

Chapter Text

Translations:

Nani o shite mo kaze ga ha o ugokasu – The breeze moves the leaves, no matter what they do.

Nightmares were a part of the Hamoto household, if even, it had become usual in the world of dreams. This could have stemmed from the root of fighting, or fear in general. But nothing they did seemed to soothe the rapid nightmares affecting their brain chemistry. Unless they had one another by their side, then maybe the nightmares were more manageable.

When Donnie had gone in that night to share his favorite tradition with his younger brother, he had felt the same depressing feeling that had attacked his system these past few weeks. Even eating hadn't seemed appetizing. So, when he got into the sterile hospital room, the young teen set the food on the nightstand and didn't move.

It didn't matter how many times he had gotten used to seeing his brother attached to so many tubes. There just wasn't a way he would ever get used to it. He had sat down in the chair and just observed. There wasn't really anything he could do, he wasn't a doctor, or a nurse. His older brother was, though that didn't make any difference.

But observing seemed to have proved something, his younger brother was getting better. His vital signs were improving, and there were less machines attached to him unlike last time. There was reason for hope, but Donnie just wanted to see his brother awake again. To see those baby blue eyes that had motivated him to keep waking up every day.

And as much as Donnie would say that improvement itself had been good enough, it simply wasn't for his mindset. Improvement meant being conscious, being aware that there was a crushing weight on all their shoulders and waking up would ease that burden.

Being grateful for what you have, or at least that is what Donnie had always told Raph who seemed to want everything someone else had. But now….it seemed that quote was punching him in the stomach.

"Mikey" Donnie whispered, "Can you just wake up already?" An unintentional choke of irritation passed through his system. He felt a little guilty for being a little angry at his unconscious brother. But only if Mikey knew.

Only if Mikey knew that his brothers had loved him for the way he was, and that a few bullies telling him off shouldn't have changed everything. But it had. And Donnie despised Mikey's predators for it.

"Mikey… If you wake up, we can show Alec and Axel that you mean business. But if you don't, you're just proving their point."

Donnie struggled to get words out, his own conscious kept telling him that it wasn't some random kids' fault, that a simple word didn't destroy his brother. But it had, and those kids hadn't been "random" in what was spoken.

"Truthfully Otouto, I really don't want to accept that this could possibly be our future. You sick, Leo and Raph secluded, me destroyed by the reality itself. And maybe that's holding me back. But Mikey…if there is any part of you that is listening to me right now, please know that I don't care what you look like, or how you talk."

Fond memories filled the young teen's head, life had been good, and even though it wasn't right then, it would be someday. The Hamoto family was strong, powerful even. It would take much more than some stupid sickness to knock them down.

Donnie sat up straight. "Personally, I'll admit that I always leaned towards the 'immortality' concept, but even now, I can see that no one can live forever." The young teen chuckled a watery laugh, "I guess that I still haven't come to terms with dad's death, denial as many would suspect. But you never did either... and I guess that it made things easier."

"And now…" Donnie took in a shuddering breath, "I believe I might have to live through the same thing all over again. And I can't Mikey… I just can't."

Tears fell down his pale cheeks, everything he had worried about, scared about, teased about, all came tumbling down. Rivers of regret, resentment, and fear crashed into his center of sanity. He wanted to kill Alec and Axel, but he also knew that no such thing would transgress. He wanted to shut down his system and never think again, to never induce the pain he would soon feel. But his older brothers would only rescue him. At that time, he hated Leo and Raph, but also felt an immense amount of love for that.

He was told to stay strong, but he didn't want to be. There was a moment to shine with happiness and courage, though this certainly wasn't the time.

"Just, don't forget that I'm here ok. Sure, dad will be there in the afterlife, but please, as many say, focus on the present. Focus on my love, Leo, and Raph's love, because I promise you that things will get better." Donnie took a second to flush all anger out of his system, "Alec and Axel aren't human, ok? If they were, they would never say stuff like that. But you are human Mikey, and humans don't just give up. Not without a fight or anything."

Donnie didn't want to ramble, but once he started, he couldn't stop. "For me at least Mike?" A sudden thought provoked him. "And for Leo? He thinks that he's failed you. I mean… he hasn't, but he'll never believe me. Wake up and show him Otouto, show him that he caught you when you fell."

Metaphors had a special place in Donnie's heart. Mostly because that was his figurative language that he used quite often. But they also meant so much more, it wasn't just about the common language, but rather a diamond in the rough. If he could use it in any positive way, he would.

"Nani o shite mo kaze ga ha o ugokasu," Donnie whispered, "The world doesn't change for you Mikey, you have to adapt, and learn how to not follow common norms. But that doesn't change anything, you know that little brother? I love you no matter how you live your life."

Donnie placed his hands on Mikey's wrist. "So just don-"

Mikey started to squirm as harsh gasps escaped his mouth. His older brother sat up alarmed and very worried. He didn't know what to do, his panic started to rise.

"Mikey stop!" He tried to grab his brothers' flying limps, "You're going to hurt yourself!"

Though his brother still continued to hyperventilate and not control his arms and legs. Finally, after about two long minutes, a nurse came rushing in out of curiosity and gaped largely at the sight.

"I'll get help!" She cried out and took off running.

Donnie sighed as sweat dripped down his brow, he was starting to become very agitated at the sound of the machines going off rapidly.

Doctors opened the door and ran inside, they relieved Donnie of his duty and asked him to sit outside. The young teen felt hesitant but forced himself to walk outside, his spirit felt low.

While sitting outside the room, Donnie legs tapped themselves, how could he possibly just sit here while his brother possibly be dying in the room behind him?

But after a long devesting ten minutes, a doctor came walking out of the room with a clipboard in hand. He mentioned Donnie to come over, but once he walked close to the doctor, he heard no machines rapidly beeping.

"Doc, is he?" Donnie held his breath.

But the doctor only smiled.

"Why are you smiling?"

The doctor smiled wider. "Donatello, you can breathe. Because your brother Michelangelo, is showing signs of waking up in a few days."

Chapter Text

*Memory*
It was a nice chilly afternoon; the grass flew with every breeze while children laughed as they played on the vibrant playground. Sand crunched, kites flew, adults sat down watching their kids run around in bathing suits and summer clothing.

"Mikey catch!" Leo yelled, "far right!"

The young seven-year-old boy took off running towards the end of the sidewalk. But as the football came crashing down, Mikey jumped a little too far. He flew onto the pavement as the gravel scratched his skin, his pants ripped from the impact.

The young child looked down and bit his lip. There was no way he would cry in front of his older brothers, not today, not ever. Blood poured from the wound, pain radiated throughout his leg and skull.

'Your ok, just breathe,' Mikey told himself, but tears still flew down his face. He was a child, but he wasn't allowed to cry. He might've if he had felt confident about himself, but that would be far from the goal.

"Are you ok?" a voice asked above Mikey's head.

Mikey looked up to see a kid around the same age as him, with blond hair and blue eyes. His skin was abnormally pale.

"Yeah," Mikey said softly, "Its only a small scrape."

"Looks more like a 'small' scrape, its still bleeding. My moms a retired nurse, I would know." The child smiled brightly with large dimples. He offered his small hand. "Name's Oliver, what's yours?"

Mikey took Olivers hand and grimaced once placed back on his feet. "I'm Michealangelo, Mikey for short."

"Cool name," Oliver bent down to Mikey's knee level, "are you sure you don't want to get that looked at? My mom would if you allowed her to."

"Yeah, I'm fine, I'll have my older brothers check. Plus, I wouldn't want to bother her." Although Mikey had no intent to show his brothers his newly acquired battle scar.

Oliver waved his hand. "It wouldn't bother her at all, she's sitting at the table over there," He pointed towards a picnic bench with a woman with brown hair and blond streaks. "She was a nurse, its what she does."

Mikey thought about it, his brothers would ask about his injury and bother him for hours of end. Or he could accept the help that was offered to him.

"Fine," Mikey sighed, "I'll let your mom take a look. But I have to tell my older brothers first."

His new friend gave an iconic cheeky smile and grabbed Mikey's hand. "I'll come with you; I wouldn't want to leave my new friend without a guide."
*End Memory*

It was that same chilly afternoon, except there weren't any kids playing outside. The snow had come in early than expected and left the park looking like a winter wonderland.

But even if it had been sunny as hopefully been predicted, Oliver wouldn't have stepped foot outside. Frankly, he hadn't stepped outside for days, or weeks.

Ever since his best friend Mikey had been hospitalized, nothing seemed happy anymore. Sleeping, drinking water, and skipping out on meals had become normal for him. Even staying awake was miserable. If Oliver could have it his way, he would sleep forever and never wake up again.

In his mind it wasn't like anyone would care, and even if that steered far for the truth, Oliver simply didn't want to exist anymore. Without his best friend since he was seven, Oliver didn't have a purpose anymore. Everything he did was for Mikey, everything he lived was for Mikey.

But maybe his purpose wasn't really his overall goal, maybe it was something more. Maybe it was just trying to exist, which seemed extra hard at the moment.

"Oliver, its time for dinner sweetheart," His mother called out from downstairs.

Oliver didn't move, moving meant fear. Fear meant death.

"OLIVER! Your mom called you down! Get down here now or I'll come up there myself."

The young teen sighed and lifted himself from his bed. His father always made good on his threats; he didn't have to think twice as he walked down the stairs with slumped shoulders.

His dad was standing in front of the table. "Well… look who decided to show up."

"I'm here, can we start dinner?" Oliver really did not feel like talking to his father, or anyone at that. But his father did not have any of it.

"No, not until you tell us what's wrong," His mother came walking over by his father, hand in hand. "As parents we deserve to know what's bothering you."

"I'm fine," Oliver said softly.

The older women shook her head. "No, you're not sweetheart, you're not fine."

"I'm fine," Oliver snarled. His anger started to rise without his consent. He was fine, Mikey was fine, he was fine…fine…fine. He wasn't in pain, no he was far from it, he was happy and joyful without a care in the world.

So why couldn't his parents see that?

His dad walked forward and placed a comforting hand on Olivers shoulders. "Son…please, allow yourself to see the way we see you. You look horrible and are not acting like yourself."

"I'm fine."

"Sweetheart please…."

"I'm fine, I'm happy, see," Oliver smiled wide, "I'm F.I.N.E! See my smile?! I'm sooo joyful right now!"

Nobody spoke, and frankly, that almost made Oliver go crazy. He was acting insane, and sure he didn't feel like his casual self, but it was his reality.

"Oliver…look at yourself. What's bothering you? Is it Mikey…"

Something in Oliver snapped at the thought of his best friend. It was as if everything shut down the moment his mother said his best friends name, all the stress, depression, anxiety, all came crashing down on him in one huge wave.

Oliver looked over and punched the wall, he needed to hit something, anything. His father and mother jumped from the sudden impulse but neither moved. If it was the fear paralyzing their bodies or the need for comfort for their son, they would probably never know. But standing in the same spot, his father asked his wife to move to another room.

The women nodded and walked off. Then came the hard part, which neither would prepare for. When it came to Oliver, the boy had never had terrible anger management. So, it was quite surprising to see his son in such a state.

"Oliver," He said softly, "Please calm down."

Oliver looked over and saw the fear in his fathers' eyes. He hadn't meant to scare anyone, but his anger and fears had become one and taken over. Though now as the adrenaline wore off, Oliver was brought down to his knees.

Tears streamed down his face as he cupped his head. He was terrified of the future, so much that he didn't want any part in it. His best friend could be dead, and he wouldn't know, his future in football could be ruined by his depression and he would never care.

Why had life brought him to this point?

"I feel so lost dad," Oliver sobbed.

His father came rushing over and enveloped his son in a warm embrace. "Me to Oliver, but I have you and your mother. And just like how you have us, we're going to go through this together."

"But I don't want to, burdening you guys is the last thing I want to do."

"You're our son, it's our job, and we love it," Oliver's dad squeezed Oliver even tighter, "Mikey will live, he's a strong little fella."

Oliver gave a watery chuckle. "Yeah, he is. But dad…your serious about Mikey living right?"

"Well, I can't promise anything, but I have a strong feeling he'll pull through."

The young teen leaned into his father's chest. In all truthfulness, he was horror-stricken when told the devastating news, and was still quite frankly that way. And as much as Oliver could've said that this whole experience with his mom and dad had brought him hope. He would be lying. He was still devastated and depressed, nothing would ever change that.

But at least he could be sad in front of his parents.

"Hey Olive?"

Oliver looked up. "Yeah dad?"

"I hate to break up our little moment, but your phone is ringing."

"Who's the caller Id?"

"It says Leo Hamoto."

Oliver sat up with a pumping heart. "Give to me dad, please."

His dad followed his instructions and walked out of the room. Meanwhile, Oliver took a deep breath and answered the phone call. Bringing the phone up to his ear, Oliver answered intently.

"Hey, Oliver…It's Leo."

Chapter Text

Everything in life is a sentiment. The way a child laughs, or a man that leaves his family for a less-valued life. There were both sides to the spectrum. Learning to appreciate these small sentiments that flew in beautiful ways.

But often enough, these split-second enjoyments are often ignored. A feeling is pushed aside for another. Related or not. Though when a person craves these small moments, it's the small burst of hope that often helps individuals get past roadblocks.

Any Hamoto boy could've related to this. Never had they been so happy to hear the heart machine beeping or the doctors having constant check-ups on their small brother. Because there was hope, a feeling of rest had been restored.

But that didn't fix everything.

Like a flower that waves beautifully in the wind, there was a moment where that flower died. This could've been likened to their situation. In many aspects, the boys had been experiencing new awakenings almost every day.

Though with every passing day, the doctors promise of Mikey waking up seemed to be slimer and slimer. Ever since that day, the young teen hadn't shown any more signs of awareness, no matter how much the boys prayed.

To make matters worse, ever since Leo talked to Oliver, his dad told the Hamoto boys about his downfall with his son. Leo had mentioned it could possibly be his fault, but nothing soothed the frantic dad, who only wanted to reestablish his connection with his son once again.

That phone call hadn't lasted very long.

TMNT

Donnie always enjoyed his studies, most of them ranging from different difficulties. He loved a challenge, when there was reason to put in more work for a sweeter reward. But he would've been a hypocrite to say that he enjoyed it.

Frankly, he mostly did it for his father, but once his father died, Donnie still strived for his affection beyond the grave. But ever since his little brother had fallen into his coma, Donnie's grades started to slip.

College started to seem less important, trying to please his brothers seemed less important. All that mattered was if his brother lived or not, which was confirmed that Mikey would live. But Mikey needed to wake up, he needed his brother to wake up to confirm his ever-dying fears.

To be honest, it had been a little while since he had attended school. Two weeks to be exact. And although the genius brother did care enough to put effort into his homework, Donnie did not want to attend the grueling hours of sitting down at a desk, but rather he could be spending that time at the hospital watching his little brother improve.

Leo hadn't pushed them to go back to school, even though Leo was trying to induce succus on its own. But his eldest brother understood the heartache all of them were going through at the moment, Mikey was their little Otouto. For that, Donnie couldn't have been more grateful for his older brothers' actions.

If anything, Leo knew that they all needed to heal in their own time. For Mikey would wake up, but on his own time.

Donnie hated and loved that sentiment.

Though he was a science guy, Donnie found himself praying to his father quite often. Maybe he believed that his father could bring Mikey's spirit back to him, or maybe he just needed an excuse to pray to someone who wasn't in physical form. But it helped, it kept him sane, and there was really no harm in trying to verbally speak to someone who was considered deceased.

But he did believe in miracles.

-0-

After a long three weeks, Donnie finally decided enough was enough. He woke up and without thinking too much, packed his bag for school. For he had done this so many times over the years, it had become a habit.

Walking downstairs, he reached for the keys and walked outside. He started the car and took off towards his local high school. On the way, Donnie looked over at the kids walking on the sidewalk.

That was once Mikey.

'Stop thinking about him for right now,' Donnie reminded himself. Thinking about his comatose brother only made matters worse, deciding to go to school was a mistake.

But if he really couldn't afford to miss any more school as if, he was already in the failing category. Going any lower meant no graduation.

Donnie needed to graduate.

It took him a good extra five minutes to find a parking spot. But once he did, reality hit him like a train. Mikey used to meet him here, and now… it would just be him. Getting out of the car just proved harder.

Grabbing his bag, Donnie opened the door and started to walk up the concrete stairs by the front doors. Kids surrounded him on all sides as he kept walking, but one ginger was different from the rest.

"Donnie!" The ginger cried out.

Donnie turned his head and smiled. "April! Long time no see!"

April came running up to him and gave him a small hug. She smiled but frowned once she saw her friend's strained smile. "Are you sure you're ready for this yet?"

"No," Donnie sighed, "But I'm in danger of not graduating, and…I really need a distraction from Mikey."

"I understand, but if you need to go home, we all understand."

"I know, but I just… I don't know what I want." The young teen shuffled his feet, in reality, he was not emotionally stable to be in such a controlled environment. He wasn't in the mindset to attain valuable knowledge.

He simply just existed.

Donnie shook his head. "I'm fine, let's just go."

His friend nodded and started to walk up the stairs. But for Donnie…he had a harder time. In reality, walking up the stairs should've been easy, but every step felt like agony.

Donnie wanted to be home, to be at the hospital, to be anywhere but where he was. Nobody understood, how could they? They all already pretended to be someone they never were, everything they could ever say wouldn't ever ease their deepest lie.

Screw April trying to comfort him.

Nobody understood. Maybe he did need to be comforted, but at the same time, he knew that he didn't want other people's pity. There were so many conflicting feelings that didn't make sense. Feelings that he didn't know could exist.

Donnie was in such deep thought that he hadn't watched where he was going. It wasn't long before he bumped into someone, that individual went crashing towards the floor.

"Sorry," Donnie said quickly, but once he looked up, the remorse went away immediately.

Standing in front of him were Mikey's former 'best friends' Alec and Axel.

"You," Donnie snarled.

Alec stood up with wide eyes. "Uh hi…your Mikey's brother, right?"

"Yeah...where is that little punk anyway?" Axel chuckled, "Binging again?" His best friend Alec gave an uneasy laugh. "Sorry Donnie, my friend Axel is only joking. If you know what I mean."

"Well, it's not funny," Donnie growled. His face twisted into a menacing stance. "I would get out of here if I were you."

Alec sighed as he rubbed his head. "Listen…we are really sor-"

"Why are you apologizing to him?!" Axel spat, "We are NOT sorry. Plus, words never hurt anyone."

"Axel…" Alec tried to hold his friend back, but Axel had already walked up to Donnie.

Axel pointed a finger at Donnie's chest. "Listen genius, your little puny brother had everything coming for him. You're lucky we stopped his suffering."

Donnie's anger started to rise; his hand twitched. Nobody talked about his little brother and got away with it. And even though he was never a fan of fights, he really wanted to punch the shorter teenager in front of him.

But if he got into a fight, there was definitely no way he would ever graduate. Plus, Donnie wasn't threatening to anyone in the slightest…but his older brothers were.

"Hey look, it's not me you should be scared of..." Donnie said calmly, "It's Rapheal you should be scared off. One call and he'll come get me. Now, do you want that?" He tried not to laugh as all the color drained from Axel's face.

"Now I-I um…I…"

Alec came rushing forward and grabbed his best friend. "We're sorry Donnie," he said softly, "We really didn't mean for any of this to happen."

Unlike last time, Axel didn't say anything. He just stayed silent but shook off his best friend and walked away.

But Alec stayed with his arms by his side. He looked up. "I'll just walk away now," he said softly. But not before Donnie called out to him.

"Hey Alec?"

"Yes?" The young boy turned around with fear and desperation in his pale green eyes.

"You're a good kid."

The young teen smiled and walked away. Though Donnie thought that bullies didn't change, he definitely saw how others influenced many people. Alec wasn't a true bully, but rather a follower of his best friend.

None of them meant to hurt Mikey that way in the slightest. And though Donnie didn't know that for sure, he saw that Alec had been truly sorry.

April tapped him on the shoulder. "Are you ok?"

Donnie turned around and gave his best friend a hug. "No, but I will be," he said softly.

-0-

It hadn't been until lunch time did Donnie receive a few texts from his brothers. Honestly, he was quite surprised that his brothers hadn't noticed his absence a few hours ago. But he couldn't quite blame them, all the attention was on Mikey right now.

And he didn't expect anything less.

He grabbed his phone as he took a bite of his sandwich. Which had gracefully been given to him by one of his friends. It hadn't been the first time he had forgotten his lunch.

(Text Messages)
Are you at school? – Leo

Yes – Donnie

….I'm proud of you bud – Leo

Donnie smiled, it felt good to be validated. Plus, he always loved when Leo used pet names, it helped him establish a special connection with his older brother.

How are you faring? – Leo

I'm okey, it's been hard tbh – Donnie

Well, me and Raph are at the hospital right now if you want to come over. – Leo

Thanks Ani – Donnie

Okey….don't forget that we are here for you. Things are hard, but they'll get better – Leo

I won't forget Leo, I pinky swear – Donnie

Good. I'm going to go check on Mikey, update you in a few – Leo

Donnie sighed and pocketed his phone. He was not going to lie when he said that he was scared of the update. Things were always worse, and the one time something good actually happened, he had been there in person.

Maybe he should leave. Sure, graduating seemed important, but his family always came first.

"Yo Donnie? You with us?"

Donnie lifted his head to see one of his friends, Renet, looking straight at him. He shrugged and went back to eating. Today just wasn't the day for talking, in his opinion.

(Text Message)
Do you need to go somewhere to breathe? – April

The young teen held back a sob but nodded his head regardless. How he landed such an amazing best friend was beyond him. But never had he been so grateful.

He got up and followed April into the hallway. Once they sat down, Donnie started to let it all out. All the tears, fears, and anything that prohibited his happiness.

He was just so scared, helpless, and missed his brother.

April just held him as she rubbed her hand around his back.

"I c-can't d-d-do it Ap-p-ril," Donnie sobbed, "I n-need m-my brothersss."

"Today was to much Don, let's get you home."

"O-okey g-g-grab my p-phone p-please," Donnie hiccupped.

April reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Putting in the passcode, she looked for Leo's number.

But once she did, her heart dropped to the floor.

(Text Message)
DONNIE GET TO THE HOSPITAL NOW! Something happened! – Leo

The young girl looked down at Donnie. "Donnie, we have to leave now."

Chapter Text

The worry in April's voice was the first thing that set Donnie off, the second being that she was shaking. He looked up with a tear-streaked face. "What is it Ape?"

April gulped nervously. "Don…its about your little brother."

-0-

Adrenaline is a funny concept; all it takes is one moment for a burst of energy to take over someone. In Donnie's case, worry and fear overloaded his system. His little brother could either be waking up, or in worse circumstances, be having his last moments.

Donnie didn't want to stick around too long to find out. Grabbing April's hand, Donnie rushed towards the front of the school. It didn't take long for the young teen to reach his shiny black car.

"Get in," He called out towards his best friend. April nodded and quickly sat down inside the vehicle, she reached over and put on her seat belt. No matter the situation, safety came first.

She looked over and frowned. "Donnie, you're not wearing your seatbelt."

"I will," the roaring of the engine filled the silence. Donnie wasted not a single second and pulled out of the parking lot. "Hey April?"

"Yes Donnie?"

"Can you text my brothers that we are on our way?" Donnie reached inside his pocket and pulled out his vibrant purple phone. "Tell them ten minutes tops."

"If you put on your seatbelt."

Donnie grunted but with a force he didn't know he had, the young teen reached and put on his seatbelt. "There, now will you text my brothers? Please?" April nodded and reached over.

Almost there, we'll be there in around seven minutes – D

"There text sent," she said softly, "Now all we need is a response."

Although April really didn't expect a response from Leo or Raph in that matter. If Leo made it sound as bad as it did, then something must be really wrong. There wouldn't be time for any texting matter at that point.

It was almost at that point that April realized that Donnie was going thirty past the speed limit on a 45-speed limit street.

"Donnie," she warned, "Please slow down. Having us get into an accident isn't going to let you see your brother any faster."

"I'm not going that fast."

"You're going over 70 miles per hour on a 45-speed limit street. You could hit someone, or worse, we could be hit."

"We're fine," Donnie's face contorted into a look of annoyance. "Plus, we have an excuse."

"You think that if you happen to hit some little child, that your excuse will change anything?! Donnie just slow down!"

"No"

"You're breaking the law!"

"No"

April's anger was starting to rise, she only wanted what was best for everyone. Even if it meant prolonging a visit for a sick individual, in the end, if they were both dead, that wouldn't contribute to any good cause.

"Use the break!"

"No"

"DONNIE! Just SLOW down!" April snapped.

"NO!"

"Why are you like this?!" She gaped, "This isn't you!"

"April just SHUT UP!" Tears streamed down Donnie's face as his hands gripped the steering wheel. "I'm trying, ok?! And I wouldn't slow down because my little Otouto could be dying, and I would miss his last moments?! So just please shut up."

April sat back in silence and shock. There had only been a few select moments when Donnie had been remotely close to snapping at her, but never had he snapped at her like this before. In many ways she knew why her best friend was not faring well, and in his perspective, it was not his fault.

Donnie was only human.

But this stress wasn't healthy. April sighed, almost too scared to respond back. But she knew that Donnie needed her more than he knew. "Donnie…I'm sorry. It was wrong of me to ask you to slow down."

Sobs shook Donnie's body as he fought to keep them in. But in the end, suppressing emotions never worked well.

-0-

It didn't take long for the duo to reach the hospital. But to April, it felt like a lifetime. Donnie never responded back to her, he only cried as she sat helpless in the side seat. She wanted to hold him and tell him that it was ok, but she also knew that he needed his brothers more than her.

So, once they reached the hospital's lobby, April grabbed Donnie by the shoulders and looked him straight in the eye. "I'm going to stay here. You deserve to have some alone time with your brothers."

Donnie hugged her as he nestled his face into the crook of her neck. She could feel tears fall down but she didn't mention it.

"Thanks Ape," he whispered. Donnie pulled away. "I'll be sure to keep you updated on his condition."

The young teen girl nodded and sat down in the nearest plastic chair. She sighed as she watched Donnie run towards the elevators.

'The Hamatos don't deserve this' was the last thought that ran through April's head before she saw Donnie disappear through the steel elevators.

-0-

The elevator couldn't have gone any slower, if it weren't for the old women and young child in the elevator, Donnie would've been far more irritated. But when those doors opened, the young teen boy went running on unto the ICU floor.

The cold tile squeaked as the young teen ran with panic in his system. Thoughts raced through his head, he tried to control them, but it was far too late. Everything was pointing in a bad direction, and Donnie would've been a complete hypocrite if he said that he hadn't already assumed the worst.

Hope wasn't really something that Donnie had yet learned to embrace.

He was the science guy, one of the only guys in the Hamoto family with logic. Leo and Raph relied always more on feelings and all that sappy stuff that Donnie tried to avoid. But now…Donnie wished that he was a little bit more than his brothers.

He really needed a little bit more of that sappy stuff at the moment. Maybe mediation would've been helpful, or at the very least, different coping skills for stressed filled times. But hopeful everything will be over soon.

Or if it was as bad as he thought it could be, grief would only plague him for weeks and years to come.

Donnie really needed a miracle.

Running towards the door, Donnie briefly paused and went over to the desk. He saw a young woman about 20 years of age at a computer typing.

"Hello, my name is Donatello. Can you help me locate my little brother?"

The young women looked up and smiled. "Hi Donatello, I'm Lizzy. What's your brother's name?"

"Michealangelo Hamoto, he is 14 years old."

"Ok, let me see…your little brother is 4n 19c. Head to the north room's and he'll be in room 19." Lizzy handed Donnie a post-it. "In case you get lost."

Donnie gave a small smile. "Thank you so much Lizzy. Have a nice day." He grabbed the note and walked with a new-found speed towards the north ICU rooms.

-0-

It didn't take long for Donnie to find the room, but once he did, Donnie almost fainted. Inside his little brother's room, there were too many people for his liking. He took a shaky breath and grabbed the door handle.

Walking inside, Donnie's legs felt like Jello, and almost buckled a few times when he took another step. Almost immediately Leo came running up towards Donnie and gave him and huge hug. Tears streamed down his pale cheeks.

Donnie hugged him back harder. "Is he..." His voice quavered.

Leo broke the hug and grabbed his hand. Leading him towards Mikey's bed, doctors parted out of the way.

"Look," Leo whispered.

The young teen looked up and dropped to his knees as he started to sob. There in Mikey's hospital room was Mikey lying down with his eyes half-way open.

"Hi Ani," Mikey whispered. "I'm finally awake."

Chapter Text

The moment Mikey woke up, everything seemed to fall in place. All the anxiety and tension along with the whole ordeal of recovery. But it wasn't as easy as it seemed to be in Leo's mind. Of course, he hadn't ever dealt with an eating disorder before. Nor had any of his brothers.

So, when the doctor started to go ahead with treatments, it was horrible to watch his little brother defy one of the only things keeping him alive at the moment. And how Leo hated the feeding tube, it looked so wrong to be on a little teenage boy's body. Yet it was on his little brother's teenage body.

Sometimes being the oldest had its perks, but this certainly wasn't one of them.

TMNT

It was a nice spring afternoon as Michelangelo laid in his sterile hospital bed. His brothers were out grabbing stuff for their stay, but the youngest yearned to be with his brothers. Ever since he woke up, Mikey felt so guilty for all the misery and pain he put his brothers through.

It was his fault

And he was still fat.

No matter how his brothers tried to put it, he was their fat little brother who was spared due to pure pity on its own. The way his thighs still bounced whenever he jumped, or the way that he couldn't place his hand across his side without having to extend his fingers.

It was pure torture.

The fact that the doctors and nurses still fed him when he was in a coma made him sick. He didn't want to eat, and no matter how bad he put it, Mikey didn't want to ever eat again. There was not any possibly or any lie that would get him to indulge in life's simple hearty pleasures. All he wanted to do was fix everything he had destroyed and try and wipe away any lasting pain his brothers still felt.

"Michelangelo?"

The young teenage boy turned his head to see his nurse walk in with a tray of food. "Hello Michelangelo, you know the drill." The nurse set the tray of food on a nearby table and brought it towards him. "Please eat, and remember we are starting small. All you need to eat is this small orange to get a sticker."

On his wall laid a chart, and for each sticker he got, the closer he was to being discharged. He needed at least 20 stickers, currently he had zero stickers due to his defiance.

Mikey shook his head as he scooted the food away from him. Even the smell made him physically sick.

The nurse gave a small sigh. "I thought you would say that. So, your brothers brought a visitor that might persuade you otherwise."

"Who?"

The young nurse gave a small gesture as his best friend Oliver came walking into the room. "Hey Mikey," he said softly.

Mikey gave a small gasp. Oliver looked different, and not in a good way. There were bags under his eyes as he walked as if he hadn't gotten any sleep lately. His skin was abnormally pale, his breathing seemed off in some weird way.

"Are you okey?" The young teenage boy asked his best friend.

Oliver chuckled. "I feel like that's something I should be asking you."

"Well, I'm not the one walking in the room looking like he is going to pass out."

"Don't worry," Oliver smiled softly, "I've gotten more sleep due to the fact that your awake."

Mikey frowned. His coma didn't just hurt his brothers, it had also hurt his best friend. He didn't want to place any burden upon anyone, but it seems he had unintentionally had. What he wouldn't give to erase that moment of his young life.

But he couldn't change the past.

"Hey Mikey?"

The young Hamoto boy looked up. "Yes Oliver?"

"Are you going to finish that orange?" Oliver asked softly. When Mikey shook his head, Oliver grabbed the orange slice and held it up as if he was examining it. "So, you're not going to eat this?"

"I thought I just answered your question. But if you really want to know, that orange will give me 10 pounds or more. And I'm already fat enough."

"To be correct, it would give you 45 calories," The young boy corrected, "But it would take you five minutes of exercise to burn it off."

"Only five?" Mikey asked with curiosity.

"Yup! That would be around ten pushups or so."

In all reality, Oliver knew that it was much more than that. But his plan was rather simple, if he could get Mikey to think that he exercised what he ate, it would let Mikey eat and help with his emotional issues and self-esteem.

That way Mikey was still eating but he was also working out in small amounts. It wouldn't burn all his calories away, but it would burn a small amount that was considered healthy by health professionals.

"Hey Mike?"

Mikey turned his head to face his best friend who was grinning. "Yes Olive?"

"I want to make you a deal. Can you hear me out?"

The young teenage boy felt his mind explore. It had been a while since anyone had challenged him, and maybe this was the chance to prove that he was strong in his values.

Mikey nodded. "Bring it on," he replied, grinning like mad.

"If you eat this orange, you can do five pushups. That way you burn all the calories you've just eaten. And that way you wouldn't gain any weight and…you get to have your first sticker!" Oliver said. "I promise I wouldn't tell anyone, not even the nurse."

Unknowing to Mikey, the nurse was actually watching from the cameras. When she first heard about Oliver's plan, she had to admit that it sounded like it would be a huge flop. But now that she could see the gears working in Mikey's eyes, there was a new feeling of hope.

"Are you sure it works that way?" Mikey asked softly as he held up the orange slice.

"100%, do you think I would lie to you?" Oliver asked innocently. And while he was technically lying, it was for a far greater purpose. "Remember that I passed health class with flying colors."

"You also failed math class."

"Is that important? I don't think it is. You just have to trust me, buddy."

Mikey looked down at the juicy orange slice, he gave a small smell and tried not to gag. But if his best friend was correct, he could easily work this off and still get a sticker.

He really wanted to leave the hospital.

"Ok," Mikey said slowly, "But only if you promise to not say a single word to the nurse about this."

Oliver held up one hand. "Scouts honor."

The young teen with shaky hands brought the orange up to his mouth.

And…swallowed it

Oliver held himself back from jumping up and down.

But the nurse did not hold back. She stood up from the computer cameras and jumped up and down. Oliver had done what she had been trying to do from day one.

He got Michelangelo to eat his first food item since he woke up.

Chapter Text

Mikey loved the stars.

Ever since he was little, he was captivated by their light and sparkle. The sense of longing and belonging seemed to work clockwork, the stars knew, and Mikey knew. How those little stars brought so much hope, he never knew. But his brothers never stopped encouraging it, and it was a habit that had stayed with him.

Even in the hospital, Mikey would stare up at the stars at night. The machines would drown out, his breathing tube noise would soften, and the bed cloth would feel a little softer. It was always a surreal moment, its those moments that Mikey thinks he might be able to overcome his mental and physical illness.

It was one of these nights that Leo come walking into his room. It had been past nine, and even though visiting hours were over, Leo had convinced the staff to let him stay a little longer. The young teen had nothing to complain about, his older brothers always brought a sense of comfort with them.

Leo opened the door, carrying a tray of dessert, but stopped when he saw the familiar look in his little brothers eyes. It was that magical look that he had learned to adore.

"Their prettier tonight," Mikey whispered. He patted the space next to him, mentioning that he wanted his brothers love. Leo walked over and sat down; he embraced his little brother as Mikey leaned against his chest.

He looked up at the stars. Mikey was right, the stars seemed to shine brighter than the night before, the sense of peace seemed to settle within the room.

"Do you think Dad is watching us from up there?" Mikey asked softly as he played with the strings of his older brothers sweater.

That question caught Leo off guard, no one, especially Mikey, ever talked about their fathers death. It had been a sore spot in all their hearts, but times were changing, and Mikey was growing up.

Leo squeezed his brother. "Of course he is. I have no doubt that he is here with us right now."

"Then why do I still feel so lost?" Tears started to fall down the sick boys pale cheeks, "Why can't I feel him like you can? What am I doing wrong? If it's this illness, I'll get over it. But why can't I feel him, Leo? I need to feel him, I need to feel his love again!" Mikey started to shake, "Leo why can't I feel him?!"

The eldest brother shifted his position so that he could give a small kiss to Mikey's forehead. No words were exchanged, but there wasn't a need for any. The stars themselves said everything, every meaning, feeling.

There was a reason Mikey had started to watch them. And there was another reason why Mikey's brothers had started to join him.

"What if I'm not good enough?"

Leo turned his head to face his little brother. "Oh Otouto, of course you're good enough."

"Leo, look where we are. We're in a hospital because I'm mentally not well. I mean…I starved myself all because of a few mean words. I almost died because of my hurt feelings. How can dad be proud of all that?"

"That's the key word, almost," Leo hummed, "Dad loves us no matter what, believe or not, he also made mistakes in his life."

"Mistakes that worked out in the end?"

"Of course," Leo squeezed his brother a little tighter. "Because life changes constantly, and sometimes all we can do if make the best of our situation. We'll stumble and fall, but that safety net that guided us when we were little, must be lowered at some point in our lives."

Memories filled both of their heads, as they longed for that safe paradise once again. Ever since their father had passed, everything seemed to get harder. Leo found it harder to connect with his brothers like he once had, Raph couldn't see hope anymore, Donnie was to stuck in his logical paradise, and Mikey…Mikey had probably changed the most.

But in a way, it all worked like a puzzle. These troubling changes that they were all going through were all shaping them to be the ultimate 'them'. The ultimate price came from that gloom but hope as well.

Just how the stars changed, security changed. Safety changed, relationships changed, death's meaning changed. But love was constant, just how the stars always seemed to invite humans into their own personal world.

"Did you remember when you were little Mike?"

Mikey turned his head to face his older brother. "What moment specifically?"

"The moment where I caught you when you fell?"

"Well yeah," Mikey replied, "you made me a promise that day."

"I did," Leo sucked in a harsh breath, "but I failed. You fell Mikey and I didn't catch you."

This was a moment where Mikey couldn't bear it, he turned his head the other way. There was a part of him that knew that Leo was only saying this because he was the oldest, and the oldest always felt like it was their fault. But Mikey also knew that this was what Leo was truly feeling.

And he was really in no position to contradict what someone was feeling. If Leo would've said this a few months ago, maybe the young teen would've protested against the statement, but now…Mikey related to what his older brother said to him.

Because Mikey let himself fall without knowing if he would ever come back up again.

It wasn't Leo's fault, it was his.

"Leo," Mikey turned his head around, "can you look at me?" The eldest complied but the frown on his face was present.

"Your not perfect Leo, your not a god or someone who magically received a gift to be able to interpret how I feel. And if you did…I don't know if I wouldn't like it so much."

Leo eyes clenched together. "But I want to fix this, I want to fix you and your problems. I want to fix Raph being depressed, I want to fix Donnie's emotional attachment issues…and I want to fix the problems that I haven't been able to fix."

"You can't fix me Leo."

"BUT I WANT TO!" Leo's breaths were shallow, as tears started to fall down his cheeks. "You don't understand Mikey, you don't understand all the pain and horror you put us all through." He buried his head into Mikey's hair. "Every day seemed futile, the doctors lost hope, even I lost hope. It was scary, horrifying to know that you might never wake up again."

"Leo…" The young teen boy pointed to his star chart on the wall. "Look how far I've come; I'm eating and working out constantly and…I still have you guys." Mikey grabbed Leo's hand. "You guys never left me when I was the most vulnerable, and I don't plan on leaving you guys any time soon. You're all stuck with me."

Leo chuckled. "All no! The horror!" He put his hand on his forehead and leaned back. Mikey playfully slapped him on the shoulder as he reached over to look at the tray of dessert.

"What is this?" Mikey eyes widened. "What is that green stuff?"

"Behold, the new hybrid, spinach, and sweet cream rolls. It's actually not to bad once you get past the thought of spinach and sweet being in the same sentence."

Mikey sighed. "I don't like the idea of sweet."

"Come on," Leo urged, "you haven't had sweets since you've been in the hospital. And Oliver informed me on that 'little something' you've been doing since he's come to visit you."

"Please don't tell anyone!"

The eldest raised an eyebrow at the fear in his brothers voice. But little did his little brother know, the process was only beneficial on his behalf, and partially – emotionally anyway – for Mikey's benefit.

"I wouldn't." Leo replied, "But you know the rules."

"I know, I know. So, you're allowing me to do ten pushups if I eat this entire dessert?"

"Yup!"

"Ok," Mikey looked down at the dessert with distaste, but picked up the spoon regardless. He spooned a small amount of dessert into his mouth and nodded his head.

"You know, this isn't actually so bad."

Chapter Text

There are moments of happiness and moments of thoughtful thinking. But there were also moments where someone realized how far they've come and celebrated deeply in their hearts.

As for Mikey's case, that wasn't uncalled for.

It had been a long journey of discovery and courage. Honestly, if anyone were to call the youngster a living testament of someone who exceeded above expectations, it would be true. Though, it had been extremely hard to get there. His brothers could testify that, but even they were stunned at the progress their younger brother was making.

It had been a long week of no eating at first, but then it turned into eating a few days a week, then eating the whole week straight. Their younger brother started to get more energized every passing day, and his sentences were starting to get more coherent.

So, when Docter Autumn brought the Hamoto brothers in for the weekly check-up, there wasn't anything surprising about what the topic of the week was.

"Thank you for coming in today," Autumn smiled.

Leo nodded his head. "It's out pleasure Docter. I hope that there is good information."

"Yes, I'm pleased to delight you with that. Your brother Michealangelo is doing quite well, he's improving off the charts. All to which has applied towards his mental health as well."

At the very beginning of Mikey's treatment, the physical part of Mikey's health hadn't been the only thing that had struck Autumn's heart, but rather also the mental part of everything. In all her years of being a doctor, she had seen many with eating disorders, and it usually ended with the child being quite scared of themselves and the food that kept them alive.

But Mikey was different in that aspect, the young child was inspiring those around him, showing everyone that a few words might've bound him then, but those bonds had been let off with enough treatment. It truly inspired Autumn to do better things than dwindle on despair and the constant pressure of everyday life.

"Well, that's good," Leo grinned. "Anything that he'll need long term?"

Autumn picked up her clipboard and gave it a quick glance. "I would still get him therapy for the first year. This is all very traumatizing, especially for a child his age. And then I would also have him go to weekly or even monthly check-ups. Of course, none of this is mandatory but advised."

"Of course, I understand the precautions and I'll be sure to follow them. Thank you doctor."

"I'm glad I was able to help, I'll be sure to let you know if anything comes up." Autumn stood up to shake their hands but paused when she saw the older teenage boy sitting down next to Leo. His features were quite worrisome, and his breathing sounded far from normal. "Are you alright…." She had forgotten to ask for his name.

The older teenage boy looked up and nodded. "I'm fine doctor, my name's Donnie by the way." He stood up on shaky legs and accepted her handshake. "I'm just relieved everything is going smoothly."

"As am I."

Donnie smiled and walked outside while Leo shook her hand. He gave one last nod as he walked outside the large door. His younger brother was waiting outside the door, his arms were wrapped around himself as if he needed to be protected.

"You ok Donnie?" Leo asked softly as he faced his brother.

Donnie took in a shuddering breath but nodded regardless. Though, Leo knew the game that his younger brother was playing. "Donnie, you know you can talk to me, right?'

"I know…I just…" Donnie blinked as tears streamed down his face. "I just…it was hard being in that room. I mean the last time we were in there…Mikey was dying and now…I'm just scared that if I walk back into that room again, Mikey will fall back into a coma. Don't get me wrong, I'm so happy that Mikey is getting better, but I'm worried that something bad will still happen."

"Nothing bad will happen, ok? Perk up, we have good days ahead of us," Leo wrapped his arms around his brothers shoulders. "If you keep believing bad things will happen then bad things will happen. But it works the same way when you twist it around."

Donnie smiled softly. "You make it sound so easy Ani; how could I possibly develop your positive mindset?"

"Its simple, you follow in the steps of the master. Aka me. So, watch and listen boy, I'm about to transform you."

His younger brother shrugged him off. "Tough luck Leo, you have a better chance of transforming Raph then me."

Leo smiled. "Well then, let's see what Mikey has to think of this. I bet he'll be on my side."

TMNT

"This is impossible," Raph muttered. He held up an orange sweatshirt against his pale skin. "Mikey will hate this."

"Well, I think it's kind of cute, has Mikey ever been obsessed with skater boys?" Oliver questioned; he positioned an orange beanie on his head. "Do you think he would like this?"

"No and no."

"Don't worry, we'll find something."

It had been a fruitless effort really; Raph and Oliver had met up – a once a time occurrence – and decided that they would go and get Mikey a welcome home gift. But that proved to be a lot harder than they originally thought.

Mikey liked a lot of things…but Raph didn't know a lot of those things. And although Oliver proved to be somewhat of some help, it still wasn't enough to find the 'perfect' gift.

"I don't think we're in the right shop." Raph added on as he looked around. There were shelves of colored beanies, pants that went abnormally low, t-shirts that either had a band or common saying on it, and skateboards…lots of skateboards.

Sure, Raph didn't know exactly what his brother wished for, but one thing was for sure. Mikey was more of an artistic kid.

Maybe there was an art shop around the plaza.

"Hey Oliver?"

Oliver looked up; another colored beanie adorning his head. "Yes?"

"I know you and Mikey used to come down here a lot," Raph walked forward. "Is there an art shop down here that has good products?"

"Of course, there's a shop not to far from here. They sell lots of art supplies and even do custom art pieces."

"Custom?"

"Dude their custom art is amazing! Me and Mike almost brought a custom art piece, but that was before…well…you know."

Ideas were formulating in Raph's mind, maybe having a physical item wasn't better, maybe…it had to be perfect. And it was perfect, it just needed to be brought.

"Let's go, lead the way."

They arrived at the art place, known as Filly's crazy designs, Raph raced up the counter. A young blond-haired women was waiting there.

"Hello, welcome to Filly's crazy designs, my name's Berklee! How can I assist you?" She asked.

"Hi, can I get a custom design?" Raph asked.

Berklee nodded. "Yes, if you can fill this out with all the information, all you'll have to do is pay, and we'll start your design!" She handed him a small packet.

Raph filled out the packet in no time and returned it back to the lady.

"Wow, this is quite the design sir," Berklee smiled. "I bet your brother will love it."

"Thank you miss," Raph returned her smile. "I know he'll love it."

Chapter Text

It was here

The design that Raph has custom-ordered has finally arrived. And just in the nick of time as Mikey would be discharged from the hospital in a few days. In the original perspective, Raph has imagined that he would get Mikey a more tangible item for his gift, but he was proud of himself for choosing a more optical option.

In the end, a sweatshirt would be memorable, that would be true…but his was far more personal. And when it came to the young bright teen brother he had commonly dealt with every day, Raph knew one thing; Mikey loved personal gifts.

Even his brothers had chosen more personal gifts. They all wanted to make his welcome home memorable, cause overall, it has been way to long since Mikey has returned home.

Raph would've admitted to being a fool if he didn't say he was quite excited to finally have his baby brother in his constant sight again. And just home in general.

They hadn't been a true family for weeks.

But now that time had come to fix that, and if a few small gifts paid off in the end, then Raph would buy Mikey a gift every day.

-0-

The moment the front door rang, Raph went running downstairs. He opened up the door to see a package with the familiar Filly's crazy designs logo sticking in the corner, with excitement the older teen boy ripped open the package and smirked.

It was absolutely perfect.

Sitting in the large brown box was a large picture frame, on the canvas itself was a picture of Mikey smiling brightly. In the corners of the canvas were Mikey's three older brothers, each one held a paintbrush, they all watched Mikey with awe and open minds.

On the bottom of the canvas laid a small quote. It read, "Painting is a form of art, but its also a form of self-expression. And your paintings of yourself are perfect the way they are."

The color around Mikey and his brothers was a strong outline of orange. And the rest of the canvas itself consisted of a faint yellow texture.

It couldn't have described what Raph was trying to go for any more perfect. The way the simple paintbrushes were drawn to show the constant support that Raph and his brothers were constantly offering for their little brother, or the way that the colors mixed with each other to show happiness and self-discovery for the whole situation itself.

It practically beamed with the full rays of the sun. All he needed now was to hide it somewh-

"RAPH! I'm home!" Leo called out as he struggled with the bags of groceries. "Can you come help me put the groceries away?"

Raph set the canvas aside and ran down to help his older brother with his request. He walked in to see Leo putting a carton of orange juice in the fridge.

"Orange juice pancakes," Raph chuckled.

The eldest turned around and smiled. "Oh yeah, I remember that. Good times."

Those had been the times right before Mikey had fallen ill though, so in a sense it was the calm before the storm. But that was the past, and the Hamoto brothers were tired of relying on the past.

Raph grabbed the rest of the bags and looked through them, it was part of his favorite pastime. Leo had bought the usual: eggs, butter, milk, cereal, different vegetables and fruits. He had also bought lots of candy bags and different snacks.

"What are these for?" Raph held up the different bags of candy.

Leo smiled as he put away the cereal boxes. "Those are for the movie night on Friday. I thought it would be fun to have a movie night when Mikey comes home."

"Movie nights…its been a while since we've done one of those."

"Well, it's always that same, Mikey chooses the movie and throws popcorn until we are all throwing popcorn at each other. And then the movie ends, and Mikey's passed out and we bring him to his room while gossiping about his claim to stay awake through the whole movie." Leo raised his eyebrow. "And lets not forget how Mikey always chooses the same movie every time.

With what the young teen boy had gone through, Mikey deserved to choose the movie every single time. But that didn't mean that watching 'Princess Diaries' every Friday had started to get old.

"I swear if he chooses Princess Diaries again, I'm going to mentally die inside," Raph groaned.

Leo chuckled. "Well, I'm pleased to tell you that he probably wouldn't choose that one again."

"Don't kid yourself Leo."

"No, I'm not joking. And do you, my young brother, want to know why? Well, I'm honored to tell you that yesterday Princess Diaries 2 came out."

"Greattttttt," Raph muttered, he handed Leo the milk carton. "I guess it's the better option though."

The eldest agreed with a swift nod.

"As they say Raph…just go with the flow."

Speaking of going with someone's impulses, Raph had yet to show Leo the canvas he ordered.

"Hey Leo, you know how we're all getting gifts for Mikey? Well, mine came today and I really want to show you."

His older brother turned around and raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? Let me see it."

With excitement, Raph raced up the stairs and grabbed the box containing the piece, he ran downstairs with a bigger prep in his step. He placed the box on the table.

"Ok, so you know how we all got gifts for Mikey?"

Leo sat down. "Yes, I'm aware."

"Well, me and Oliver went shopping for a gift, but we couldn't find anything that screamed 'Mikey!'. But that's when I thought, 'maybe Mikey wants something more artsy'. And so, I went down to the Filly's Crazy designs."

"The art place by 5673 street?"

"Yeah! Though I only expected to get some knock-off paint brushes or something like that. But I saw that they made custom pieces, and for a good price to. So, I ordered one and it finally came."

It had come in relative time as well, to which Raph expected a good few weeks before it showed up. But it had only taken the artists two days to create such a masterpiece.

Raph flipped the canvas as Leo's eyes lit up. "This is amazing Raph!" Leo said softly. "I'm sure Mikey will love it."

"I hope so, I really put a lot of thought into this."

"Don't beat yourself up Raph, he will love it."

It wasn't the first time that his older brothers words hadn't impacted him. And it certainly wasn't the first time that Raph hadn't wanted to listen to him. But maybe Leo was right…maybe Mikey would love the gift his older brother had gotten him. Speaking of gifts….

"Hey Leo?"

Leo looked over. "Yes Raph?"

"What did you get Mikey?" Curiosity seeped in as Leo had always done things with a personal touch. But Leo's face dropped as he sighed.

"Leo? What did you get him?"

"Knock-off paints brushes."

Chapter Text

After eight weeks, five hours, and twenty minutes, Mikey was discharged from the hospital. The ride home felt surreal to Leo, everything slowed down as he looked back at his younger brother in the back seat.

'Don't worry, he's not going anyway', he told himself. But he couldn't deny the intense feelings that he felt and was currently feeling. His little brother looked so full of life; his earlier hospitalization hadn't done anything to his physical appearance.

But Mikey would need therapy, and that was ok. Because he wasn't going to go through it alone, to which, he hadn't done anything alone ever. His brothers were always on the sidelines, encouraging him to keep going even if he didn't realize it.

So maybe this whole instance could've been avoided if he had learned that sooner, but Mikey hadn't been the only one to grow from this experience. Everyone had improved in some way, emotionally or physically.

Leo was more independent from his harsh thoughts, learning to not let them weigh him down

Raph had learned to accept himself in more of a sentimental way

Donnie had learned to open his mind to the world, rather than the seamless worlds of technology

And Mikey…well he learned a lot. He learned that he was perfect the way that he was, and it was alright to feel negative emotions.

But he was certainly glad to move on to a better chapter of his life. One that would entail much more unity and self-care, not just for themselves, but for others around him as well. He already knew that his brothers were ready for the new change.

Leo pulled their car into the driveway; he grabbed the keys as everyone got out. Opening the door, he watched as Raph picked up the youngest and ran inside as Mikey called out in protest. Donnie went chasing after them, mumbling that he was always last.

This brought a big smile to the eldest face; their family had certainly not been this happy since before Mikey's hospitalization. And for a while, he thought that maybe their family wouldn't ever be the same again, but that was starting to seem false.

Maybe things could go back to what to how they were. Or maybe things were ok the way they were.

"WAIT FOR ME!" Leo cried out, running towards the door. He opened it to see Raph ticking Mikey on the couch, who was squealing for him to stop. His laughs echoed throughout the room, as Donnie held his phone, taking a video of the rare occurrence.

"Ra-sto-ahaha-st-ah-plea-ahhh-noooo-ahhh," Mikey giggled. He squirmed and laughed, trying to get out of his brothers grip, which wasn't happening any time soon. The hot-headed brother only ignored him.

It was a fun sight to witness

Leo went to sat down next to Donnie but watched as his genius brother walked upstairs to his room. Following him, he saw Donnie walk into his bedroom and sit down at his computer.

Worry filled Leo's system; this was a joyous occasion. What could his brother be upset about? Of course, Donnie had always retreated to his room, regardless of what he was feeling. But the difference laid where the heart began.

They had almost lost Mikey, and there wasn't a dull moment where they didn't regret hanging out with their little brother, before or after he woke up from his coma. Maybe that's what didn't make sense, or maybe they were all confused on how they all felt about the whole ordeal.

Or maybe, Donnie felt alone in one matter or two.

"He's pretending, you know that right?"

Leo looked up. "Who?"

"Mikey. He's pretending to be happy, that what he didn't or did do was a mistake." Donnie typed something on his computer.

"Or maybe he's relived that he's home with is family. And this whole ordeal is over." Leo countered back.

Donnie frowned. "Its not over Leo. He's still has a long road of recovery ahead of him."

"I know Don, but he isn't alone in that matter. Though, in some form, we all have a long road of recovery ahead of us."

"Are you implying therapy?"

"Maybe," Leo sat down on Donnie's bed. "But I'm not just implying therapy for just Mikey, but rather, for all of us as well."

"I don't need therapy Nardo, if you didn't notice I'm doing just fine."

"We need closure Donnie, what we went through was very traumatic. Not just for Mikey, but for all of us. Don't you feel the need for that Don?"

Donnie stopped typing and looked up, his emotions flaring up. To start, he wasn't good at emotions, but he couldn't just control them.

And that made him angry

Angry that he couldn't control when he felt sad, angry, and simply just disappointed with life. He felt angry that his little brother had suffered, and he didn't notice. He envied how Leo still felt like a good older brother, when he felt that he was the worst brother on the planet.

He needed closure but he didn't want to admit he wanted it

"Donnie, I want to know what you're thinking. But I can't Otouto. Please talk to me," Leo said softly.

Donnie took in a shuddering breath. "I am just so tired Leo. Tired of being someone who I hate and love at the same time, tired of not being good enough."

Silence filled the room as Leo took in his brothers words. He shuffled on the bed, feeling and sensing the world around him.

"Do you think that it's your fault?" He whispered.

His little brother stood up and sat down next to Leo. "I don't want to say that it was my fault, because that wouldn't be true. But I played a part in this Leo, I ignored Mikey's simple pleas for help. This isn't the first time this has happened. Look at me crying to you right now when Mikey is alive and well downstairs, but I'm making this about me and that shouldn't feel right but it does. And I'm confused Leo, I don't understand who or what I'm supposed to be. I don't understand why there is a deep hole of pain inside myself or what I'm doing to prevent it. I'm confused."

"You're growing up Donnie, these feelings are normal."

"I'm aware, and I hate it."

"It's not meant to be enjoyable Don," Leo wrapped his arm around Donnie's shoulder, "It's meant to be uncomfortable, because you are your own individual and you make your own choices. It's hard to admit you're not perfect, but let me tell you one thing, that young teenager downstairs admires you, praises you even. Please don't let him down by discouraging yourself."

"Mikey idolizes me?"

Leo didn't respond but Donnie already knew the answer. This brought a huge smile to his face, and a whole new confidence swelled inside him.

"Thanks Leo, that really means a lot to me." Donnie whispered.

"Of course," Leo ruffled Donnie's hair, "But lets put this behind us, ok? I heard that a movie night is in the works, and I for one don't want to watch Princess Diaries again."

"Yeah, and we have to give Mikey our gifts."

-0-

It wasn't long before Donnie and Leo came down with their gifts, plus Raph's. The youngest gave a bright smile as the gifts were laid before him.

"Are these really all for me?" Mikey asked timidly. His pale features sticking out against the red statin couch.

His eldest brother responded with a small nod as he pushed the presents forward.

Mikey gave a tiny squeal and grabbed Leo's first. Eagerly ripping the wrapping paper, the young teen opened the box. Inside were a large pack of paintbrushes, with different designs on the handles.

Tears welled as he grabbed the brushes and heavily admitted the stark comparisons against each one. Though this was only a small reminder of how his brothers felt about him, it was a small gesture with many words.

"Thank you so much Leo!" He gasped as he went to hug his brother. To which, Leo applauded as he hugged his younger brother back.

It wasn't long before Mikey went to grab the purple wrapped gift and unwrapped it with haste. Unlike the latter, there wasn't a box accompanied with the gift, rather there was a pair of nun chucks with his name written in gold on the handles.

"This is beautiful Donnie! Where did you even find these?" He asked as he admired the nun chucks.

"A martial arts studio, it's a few doors down from us. They usually don't take in requests for custom art pieces, but they knew our father. And likewise, they wanted to do a favor for our fathers generosity, so I asked them if they could do a favor for me."

"They are beautiful Don, thank you!"

The gift spoke more than words could ever tell. There was a purpose, and it was personal to him. Not to any of his brothers, but rather himself.

If only his father could've been there to see all of them. He would've been so proud.

"Here Mikey," Raph passed Mikey his gift. Unlike the others, this gift was larger and far more spacious than the rest. It only made the young teenager more curious about what was inside the red wrapping paper.

The youngest opened the red gift with anticipation, his heart raced, his fingers felt clammy. And he loved it, the moment he laid his eyes on the painting, a spark went off in his chest.

It was perfect

The painting spoke to him, much more than any gift had given him. The way he was in the center of everyone that loved him, and the way that the paintbrushes conveyed self-change along with self-discovery. No colors clashed, nothing seemed out of place, everything had a purpose.

"Wow, Raph, I'm speechless," Mikey whispered, tears fell down his pale cheeks.

"I'm glad you like it Mike," Raph reached up and wiped his brothers tears. "But there's no need to cry. This is a joyous occasion, and I for one am certainly glad that you're here right now with us."

"Yeah," Mikey took in a deep breath, "Yeah, you're right."

"Good, lets put on that movie shall we."

"Yes, and I'll eat all the treats while you all fall asleep!" Mikey went to grab a handful of candy. But his eldest brother stopped him as he held up the bowl.

"Don't kid yourself my young brother, we all know whose going to fall asleep first."

Mikey jumped up and grabbed the bowl from his brothers hands. "Its not going to be me!" He grunted.

"Just let the kid think that fearless," Raph grabbed the remote. "What movie Mikester?"

Mikey grinned, knowing how to easily annoy his brothers with one word.

"Princess Diaries."

Chapter Text

Mikey hadn't lasted that long.

It hadn't even been more than thirty minutes before the youngster had passed out on the couch. Much to his brothers words, that were seemly accurate.

"Aww, look at him," Leo played with his little brothers hair. "He's adorable when he's asleep."

"Yeah, except when he drools," Donnie pulled out his arm from under Mikey, to which, was covered in drool. "I think he drools enough to fill up the Hover Dam."

The brothers all laughed, not minding how The Princess Diaries was still playing in the background. But what they had noticed was that their little brother had eaten a few gummy worms.

And although that was minor to what they all had eaten that night, it still had been progress. Considering how Mikey hadn't even asked to work off the sweets, or maybe his exhaustion had finally caught up to him.

But it was a start, and for that, his brothers were eternally grateful for that small miracle. And for every miracle that had come their way.

Though, Leo had a good idea of who had blessed them from up above.

"I'm guessing we are sleeping down here?" A voice rang out, cutting Leo from her thoughts.

Leo looked up. "I mean…if you want too."

"I don't see why we can't, its quite comfy having Mikey sleeping on my lap." Raph yawned as he reached up. He scooted back and laid his head down on the edge of the couch, and just like that, he was in the same predicament as Mikey. Drooling and oblivious to the world around them.

It was a cute sight to witness, and for once, all the worries in both of the awake, yet unaware brothers disappeared. There was a slight humming as the TV faded from the background, the air stilled, and peace filled up the small area.

"I think I'm going to sleep good tonight," Donnie yawned. "But maybe I should head upstairs."

"You're not going to sleep down here?"

"I would love too, Leo, but you know I have back issues." He stood up as he stretched. "If I sleep down here, my back will be very mad at me tomorrow."

The eldest stood up and gave Donnie a hug. "Ok, go get some sleep brainiac. We'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."

Donnie waved his hand tiredly and turned to head up the stairs. But before he could enter his bedroom, he turned around.

"Thank you, Leo, for everything. I couldn't have gotten through today without you." He whispered softly.

Leo winked at him and smiled. "Of course, Otouto, I'm always here. Now go get some sleep!"

-0-

Leo really hadn't been joking about the whole early procedure.

At six in the morning, the eldest rose and made breakfast. He whipped up the classics eagerly but was mindful of the clear instructions that Mikey had given him.

You hurt my kitchen, I hurt you

It had been quite the shocker when Mikey had actually gone through with his warnings. Though, at the time, it had been an accident…that had involved Leo.

To be fair, it hadn't really been his fault, it was the oven's fault. It could have been close to the truth, Leo would've reasoned, since every kitchen utensil seemed to despise him.

But Mikey didn't have any of it

He said that Leo was banned from the kitchen until further notice, and that Leo had to clean every surface that the oven had destroyed.

Though that was months ago, far before Mikey had fallen into his coma. And now Leo was determined to prove his little brother wrong, which was proving to be a challenge.

Making the scrambled eggs had been easy , but making the pancakes wasn't in his skill set. Putting the pancakes on the skillet was even harder.

"How does Mikey do this?" Leo asked, mostly to validate his thoughts. But he could only form one pancake, since the rest of the batter wasn't in the bowl.

It was everywhere else but the bowl

There was batter on the walls, the sink, himself, and….Mikey was going to kill him.

A new smell reached his nostrils and Leo realized that his pancake, his only successful pancake, was now burning. He quickly grabbed the spatula and forcefully removed the pancake – which was now stuck to the skillet.

The pancake went flying through the air and landed on the table. Leo could've laughed about how ironic the whole situation was, but he was far too busy panicking about the mess surrounding him.

He was about to grab a rag when he heard a yawn. Slowly turning around, Leo saw the one and only person that he didn't want to see at the moment.

Mikey

"Leo, I heard something, and I…" Mikey looked at the kitchen and rubbed his eyes. Forbidding himself at the thought that this was real. But once again, reality seemed to dump his hopes into the trash.

"Leo," Mikey growled.

The eldest brother quickly felt the tense aura in the air as he started to slowly back away. Fear implemented itself into his heart, his entire body shuddered at the thought of his little brother getting mad at him.

But Mikey didn't get mad at him, or better yet, tell him off for his efforts. Instead, the young teenager sighed and went to grab the bowl of nonexistent batter.

"First," he said quietly, "You need to make sure that all the ingredients stay inside the bowl. Its not useful if you have to scrap all the batter off the walls, counters, and more importantly, yourself."

He gestured for Leo to start cleaning the mess around him, to which, Leo applauded. It was a far better outcome than he originally thought would be bestowed upon him.

"Next," Mikey grabbed the carton of eggs, flour, and a gallon of milk. "You have to gather all the ingredients beforehand. Then, you can start to add all the ingredients in the bowl, not the wall, not the stove, the bowl."

He lifted the bowl where Leo could see it. "This is an amazing invention if you use it right. But that's just speaking from experience."

Though Leo could've called how patronizing his little brother was being, or how embarrassing the whole situation was, there was a large fiber in himself that told him that he deserved this.

'He's just trying to teach me how to cook'

It was fruitless effort, that Leo knew. Teaching him how to cook, when reality had deemed him unworthy of that talent, wasn't something that was magically going to change. But if it made his little brother happy, then Leo would partake in Mikey's lessons all day.

Even if nothing was going to change in the end

Mikey spoke up, cutting Leo from his thoughts. "Now comes the hard part," he said. "You have to dump the batter unto the skillet, but not the entire bucket." Grabbing a measuring cup, Mikey dipped it into the bowl and gathered some batter. Then he dumped the measuring cup of batter on the skillet as he watched it sizzle and crackle.

"Then, we wait. Every few minutes, we're going to flip it. This process repeats until both sides are a light golden brown."

'Duly noted, take time to let the food cook'

A few minutes passed before Mikey spoke again. "Once they are golden brown, we can remove them from the skillet." He gestured towards the plate of pancakes, that he had already removed. "Voila, that's how you make pancakes."

Sounded easy in theory, and looked effortless, but was still something Leo knew that he wouldn't be able to accomplish.

He simply just didn't cook

But he appreciated that his little brother was looking out for him.

And for once, Leo smiled, knowing that everything was going to be alright.

Chapter Text

Oliver was not a very sentimental person

There was a very line that he didn't cross, though, nothing materialistic ever spoke more words than actions. But when he saw his best friend's car pull into the driveway, something spoke to him.

'He's ok'

Maybe that was what he had needed to hear or had heard from many different people. Though he didn't believe it at the time, there had been too many upsetting factors.

But now…now he could believe it.

And when he watched Raph reach for Mikey – who had been laughing – everything felt complete. That there had been a full circle of life, and emotions that he had never felt before. That made Oliver want to run over, but he knew that Mikey needed his brothers.

Though, he knew that Mikey would need him as well, just not at that moment. That made his stomach relax, his head stop spinning, and his muscles remained dormant.

Oliver chuckled, his hands remining in his pockets. After a few minutes, the Hamoto's went inside, and so did he.

Mikey would need him, just not right now.

TMNT

It was around ten the next morning when Oliver woke up. He sat up, clearly energized by the night before. Groaning, Oliver whipped his feet to the side of the bed and stood up on shaky legs. There was a set of clothes next to his bed as he slipped them on.

He would have to remind himself to thank his mother later.

But for the moment, he was happy to sit down on his bed and think about his day's adventures. Which wasn't anything special. Ever since his best friend had fallen ill, Oliver had lost joy in many activities he used to indulge in.

He had even ghosted his whole football team

And maybe that meant he had been a jerk in some sense, but he had been hurt in ways that he thought weren't possible. Charlie had still reached out to him, which had been refreshing.

But Oliver hoped that Mikey reached out to him, soon than later. He was starting to really miss his best friend, who was the prime reason he was in the position he was currently in. It felt as if his heart was pulled into two.

On one hand, Oliver wanted to run over to Mikey's house and beg him to hang out with him

But he also wanted Mikey to come to him when the time was right

Considering how Mikey had just gotten home from the hospital a day prior, it wasn't hard to understand how his brothers wanted to have a lot of family time. Though, Oliver wouldn't mind if Mikey included him in some of those 'family' moments.

"Oliver, are you up?"

The young teenage boy turned his head towards the door, which guessing by the voice, was his mother.

"I'm awake," Oliver replied as he stood up and stretched.

His mother responded by opening the door slowly, and then walking over while looking at her son with a careful eye.

She carefully straightened out the creases on the front of her son's shirt. "Any fun plan's for today?"

"No."

"Well, why don't we make a plan for today?"

His mother's smile was contagious, which Oliver could've done without. He was supposed to be sulking, but what about…he really didn't know. And maybe that could've contributed to his unhappy but calm mind.

"No offense mom, but I'm not really feeling up for an action-packed day. Would you mind if I rested for today?"

That was the wrong thing to say, though Oliver felt too exhausted to care.

"What's wrong? Did you not get enough sleep? Are you sick?" His mother reached for his forehead, but Oliver pulled away.

He hadn't meant to worry his mother, but he really didn't know how to respond. In a sense, he was feeling quite sick, but not what the typical sickness entailed. It was far more emotional, if that was even a thing.

Simply, Oliver was feeling the blues

"I'm alright, just tired. Can I go back to sleep?"

His mother frowned. "I believe that too much sleep is a problem. How about you get some breakfast? And if you still happen to feel tired after eating, then I'll let you rest some more."

Oliver sighed. It wasn't the deal that he had hoped for, but it far better offer than what he expected. Especially since his mother was quite an active person during the day, and often would drag her family into vigorous activites.

"Fine," he responded, "But you have to promise to stick to your deal."

"I promise Oliver, with every fiber in my heart."

TMNT

Breakfast was quite simple, to say the least.

Though nobody minded, many people – including Oliver – were rarely hungry in the morning. But his mother always had a large appetite and would eat the rest of breakfast if someone was feeling unwell.

Today was no different

Oliver had been able to digest a few spoonful's of eggs before he started to feel full, and even more tired than before.

But when he was about to get up, a knock on the door stopped him from depositing his plate into the large sink. Turning towards his door, Oliver marched, half-expecting to wave off a solicitor. But when he turned the doorknob and opened the door, there in front of him stood someone that he never expected.

There on his front steps was….Mikey

-0-

Oliver didn't know what to say or do, it seemed that it had been way longer than before. Silence passed as neither moved nor talked.

That was until Mikey smiled and waved. "Hi," he said softly, "I'm sorry to intrude but I-"

Oliver went and hugged his best friend with much intensity, he laid his head in the crook of Mikey's neck as tears streamed down his face.

It was a surreal moment

It had been one thing to see Mikey in a hospital bed, pale as the white bed sheet. But now… to see his best friend alive and walking around, it was quite the dream.

Oliver was convinced that it wasn't real, that Mikey wasn't there. But when he felt Mikey finish the hug, more sobs erupted from his throat. He was very relived; more than he thought he might be.

"Its ok," Mikey whispered, "I'm here, alive and breathing." He rubbed comforting circles on Oliver's back, as that soothed the both of them.

'He's ok, he's ok, he's ok, he's ok, h…"

"I was so scared," Oliver said softly, his voice cracking with pure emotion. He held Mikey tightly, with every fiber in his being, scared that if he let go then Mikey might disappear.

"I was scared too," Mikey wiped his face, "but I held on. Because I knew that people needed me, and that I couldn't leave any of you behind. But I'm sorry Oliver, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about everything and that I almost thought that nobody cared about me."

"I care about you."

"I know," Mikey gave a watery laugh, "and I'm sorry I didn't realize that. Please forgive me Oliver, I don't think I could live on if you're mad at me.'

Oliver looked up. How could his best friend possibly think that he was mad at him? If anything, Oliver was mad at himself for not seeing Mikey suffering until his initial collapse. But both were on the edge of possibilities, and anything was possible.

"I'm not mad at you Mikey, not a single bit." Oliver sat up and faced Mikey. "Do you promise to listen to me though?"

Mikey nodded

"Michealangelo Hamoto, promise me that you'll never ever do something that dangerous ever again. Can you promise me that?"

His best bud once again nodded as Oliver brought him in for another hug. It didn't matter how long this one lasted, nor did Oliver care if he stood there all day.

"I love you Mikey." Oliver said softly.

Mikey hugged him back even harder. "I love you too Oliver."

Chapter Text

It had been a week since Mikey had been home

And hadn't taken very long for Mikey to start to become irritated with each and every one his brothers

Don't get him wrong, the young teen loved his family with all his heart but when he was constantly being monitored 24-7, it got to him slowly but surely. The only time that Mikey got to have time to himself was when he used the restroom, and even then, his brothers would wait outside for him to finish.

Its not that he could've blamed them, considering his previous experience with hiding important details. But when he never had a moment to breathe by himself, it was rather annoying to have his brothers breathing down his neck.

So, on the fifth day, Mikey snapped without meaning too

It had a busy day, from going to the doctor's office to cleaning his bedroom as he hadn't cleaned it in weeks. And after four hours, Mikey had finally organized everything, which lead him to feel extra hungry.

Heading downstairs, the young teen went down to make himself a hearty lunch. He grabbed some meat, a piece of bread, and a glass of water as he went to sit down at the table. But lurking nearby were two of his oldest brothers.

Not wanting to pay any attention, Mikey took a bite of his sandwich. Different flavors filled his mouth with a unique aftertaste.

'This sandwich is really good' The young teen had concluded

He took another bite

His brothers inched closer

Mikey took a sip of water

His brothers took a few large steps

Mikey gently placed his sandwich back on his plate. "I see you," he sighed.

The eldest walked over and sat down. "Huh, I thought our ninja skills were pretty good."

"Clearly they are lacking," Mikey took another bite. "But why are you following me around? Aren't I little old to have a babysitter?"

"We're not babysitting you Mike," Raph came walking over. "We're monitoring you, in case anything goes wrong."

Anger flared up in Mikey's chest. He knew that his brothers meant well, but he needed his space. Especially after the whole ordeal he had been through.

Was that too much to ask?

"I'm fine, if you couldn't already tell. And something is wrong, very wrong."

"And what is that?"

"You guys are the problem!" He spat. "You're always following me around, even though I'm clearly not a baby anymore. And I know what you're going to say, but I need time for myself and you're not giving me that."

"We just want to make sure you're ok Mikey," Leo said softly. "Can't you give us that reassurance?"

Worry flared up in Leo's eyes, and when that happened, Mikey had just begun to see how worried his brothers were. Though even after everything, Mikey knew that his brothers would always worry.

And maybe that should've softened his anger, though it did in a sense. But Mikey still felt the same yearning to be free from social interaction, no matter how much emotion he came across.

"As I said before, I'm fine Leo." Mikey went to grab his older brothers hands and smiled when Leo let him.

"So, you're not mad?" Raph asked

The youngest shook his head. But Leo piped up, looking at his younger brother with soft eyes and a caring heart.

He sighed. "Are you ok Mikey? Don't lie to me, be honest."

"I'm…I don't know Leo," Mikey's smile fell. "I want to say that I'm happy, or that I'm sad but angry. Which I'm not, but I just…I need time to think…." He stood up and faced his brothers. "alone." Mikey walked away from the table as he started to walk up the stairs and didn't look back.

Because he said the truth,

Mikey just needed time to think

Though he hoped he wouldn't need a lot of time to come to a happy conclusion.

TMNT

It had been an hour since Mikey had walked up to his room

Which shouldn't have worried his brothers, since they all needed time to self-reflect. But the worry that had been developed didn't lessen.

So, when Donnie's two older brothers were gathered around the dinner table once Donnie had returned home. Questions popped into his head, along with a silent hint of worry.

"Ummm, should I know what happened?" Donnie asked, setting down his bag on the table. "Or you going to make me pry it out of you?"

There as a moment of silence and the genius brother was considering leaving to consult his little brother. But Leo spoke before he could've moved.

"We pushed him too far Don, without even meaning too. Its just that we are scared that he'll just collapse again or that he'll stop eating. And…" Leo sucked in a shuddering breath, "I can't lose any of you again. When Dad died, I felt as if the entire world had stopped spinning, but you guys brought me back to earth. I'm still here because of you…"

Tears filled Donnie and Raph's eyes as they thought about how much pain that sudden death had brought them. How their entire world had fallen about in just a day.

"And when Mikey got sick, I felt dad telling me that Mikey wasn't going to make it. That feeling was terrifying, devastating and I thought I wouldn't wake up ever again. So maybe that pushed Mikey over the edge but…" a sob escaped his throat. "I couldn't do it again, or I might've died myself," Leo whispered.

"I felt it too."

Leo looked over at Donnie, who was struggling to control his breathing.

"I felt the same feeling you felt too Leo, every single minute of it. And I didn't know what to do or react, or how helpless I felt. It was scary, but Mikey survived against all odds, and he'll do it again." Tears streamed down Donnie's face.

"I guess it's my turn now…"

They both turned their heads towards Raph

Raph sighed; his voice was shaky. "I'm not a very emotional person, though you both are aware of that. But I still feel emotions and react to stressful situations, and cry. Mostly in secret of course. I can't say that I felt the same urging death feeling from our father, or that a feeling of hope had entered in my system throughout this entire ordeal. Though…you all saw me. I was such a mess."

"But you're our mess, just how you guys are my little brothers forever," Leo wiped away some stray tears. "We may come across trials that seem uncomfortable, and that might be hard. It will be hard. But we'll always have each other."

"Always," The second youngest put his hands in the middle of the table.

"Always," The second eldest put his hands next to Donnie's

"Always," The eldest placed his hands by his younger brothers. "Always and forever."

A pact was made at that moment, and so they waited for their little brother. One hour passed as another one passed, until when it reached hour three did Mikey come down sobbing.

He came running down the stairs into his brothers open arms, as his brothers held on tight. It was a surreal moment and Leo was grateful.

Because the journey may be long, but with his brothers, it was worth every mile.

Chapter Text

"You get to choose who you want to be."

That was quite the sentiment that Mikey hadn't learned to grasp. To think that everything had started with a comment, and the saddest part was that he had let those words choose who he was. It shouldn't have happened; he should've told someone.

But he was too scared, too far in deep to have gotten it under control

And then he collapsed. Which had caused a whole whirlwind of problems, not to mention the unintentional worry he had caused. That was only part of the small apology he owed his brothers and Oliver. Though there wasn't anything he could say or do to truly show how sorry he was.

But he knew where to at least start

-0-

It had been about three weeks before Mikey decided that he wanted to embark on the thought of going to school. At first, it had been hard to accept that he would have to go back someday. But after a few weeks, Mikey realized something within himself. He was done being scared, because being scared is what got him into this large mess.

So, maybe that's what propelled this surge of confidence

Or maybe its what got him into the school itself

Mikey will never truly know, though it was something he loved about himself. Among other things that were slowly reforming.

He walked to his first class, ignoring all the stares that were shot in his direction. Though Mikey couldn't really blame them, it was a valid rumor with some truth. But it was quite sad that he been the one to make the eating disorder rumors come true.

That was something Mikey despised about himself

His first period was somewhat boring, considering it was math. Though the amount of homework following that was quite impressive with how much school he missed. Originally, the young teen thought that his teachers would give him all the schoolwork he had missed. But it seemed that mercy was on his side for once.

Then it was science, although that wasn't the slightest bit boring. It was a class period of exploding random objects with different chemicals. Plus, Oliver was in his class, so it naturally made class a little bit more interesting.

A few more classes passed by; all of which became a blur of boredom and daydreams. But it came to a halt when lunch came around. Because Mikey knew that his former bullies were somewhere in the large cafeteria.

"Mikey?"

With only shaking hands holding his orange lunch tray; Mikey turned around. Though his shaking stopped once he saw it was only Oliver.

"Hey Olive," He replied. "Thank goodness you're here."

"I saw you halfway across the cafeteria, you looked like you needed your best friend." Oliver went over and clapped Mikey on the shoulder. "Plus, Charlie wants to catch up with you. Its been a while."

"Oh yeah, I forget about him."

"Rude. I'm going to tell him that you said that" Oliver teased. "We'll just have to see how generous I feel today."

His best friend only pushed him lightly. "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh? Test me, Mike. Then, you'll see how far I can go."

"Yeah, yeah yeah, you're all bark no bite."

"Someone is on a tangent today. Fine then, lets see how tough you are. Last one to the table is a rotten egg!" It was only a few seconds before Oliver took off running, his best friend not far behind him. They whirled past students, tables, and occasionally a teacher or two.

The table was in sight as Mikey pulled through with impressive speed but forget to yield to the student walking in front of him. With a large bang, two lunch plates came tumbling to the ground as a yelp rang throughout the air.

Talking ceased

People stopped walking

And every single eye on was on him

Mikey got up, dusting off his pants. He was about to apologize when he stopped his words mid-sentence. His eyes grew wide with realization, as his legs gave a small tremble. The air stilled with an apprehensive tone, nobody moved with everyone on the edge of their seats.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't see you there," the student replied. But the student had a name, one that Mikey had learned to avoid over the years.

"Yeah, I'm sorry Alec. I should've seen you walking there." Mikey uncomfortably rubbed his head. He thought about what he should say next, but nothing came clear to him. But there was something that was also quite confusing.

Surprisingly, he didn't feel any anger. Instead, he looked at Alec's face. It was easy to see the guilt plaguing the young former bully. And for that, Mikey felt nothing but compassion for Alec. Because if anyone knew how it felt to make horrible mistakes, it would be him.

If his brothers could forgive him for not telling them about his eating disorder, than Mikey could forgive Alec for all the nasty words he had said during his former years. But he would gladly take an apology at that moment in time.

So, when Alec opened his mouth, Mikey prepared himself with an open mind.

"Mikey, I..I don't know what to say. Maybe there's nothing I can say that would fix everything I ever said to you. But please know this Mikey, I never meant to hurt you. I should've realized that a long time ago, so I'm sorry Mikey." Alec looked over at Mikey with a sad smile.

Different emotions flared through his system, as thoughts of how he could possibly respond littered his busy mind. Students continued to stare at them, nobody breathed with the anticipation in the air. There were so many different directions that Mikey could choose. But he relied on his brothers words.

'You get to choose who you want to be'

He didn't want to be a bully, nor someone who was referenced too as unkind. Though, Mikey already knew who he wanted to be.

Standing up, Mikey extended his hand out to Alec, who smiled as he accepted the kind gesture.

"So, you're not going to hurt me?" Alec asked softy once they were facing each other. "I did so many awful things, I would get it if you wanted to."

Mikey gave a small sigh. "I already know what I chose Alec, I knew who I was before you told me all those comments. But it was my fault that I lost myself, and I know to never allow that to happen again."

"But that doesn't fix everything I said."

"I know, but maybe that's enough. We've all grown today, even yesterday. The past can't be changed, but the future can. So let me ask you this, who do you want to be Alec?"

"I don't know, nobody's ever asked me that before."

"You don't have to choose now, but just think about it." Mikey smiled. "But I am excited to see who the true Alec is."

Alec grinned wide. "I can't wait to find out too."

"Good. Now let's eat, I'm starving."

The students cheered as Oliver embraced his best friend, muttering how proud he was of his best friend. But throughout the much-needed chaos, stood Alec without any friends. As he had left Axel due to the fact that bullying was too much for him.

"Hey Mikey?"

Mikey turned around. "Yes Alec?"

"Could I possibly sit with you?" His tender voice reached Mikey's ears as he grinned with a soft smile.

"Of course, you can Alec. I just hope that Charlie doesn't scare you too much."

With that thought, Mikey grabbed Oliver's hands and walked to the lunch table. Which all too soon ended with the sound of a bell. But it hadn't been uneventful, far from that even. And as he headed too his next class, he felt ready for the next step on this large journey.

Chapter Text

Dear my amazing readers, there is so much that I want to say. But let me start off by saying that every view brought me so much joy, all your comments kept me going. Thank you all so much, this had meant the world to me.

Though this story has become a part of me, with every chapter, I always put part of myself in it. This story has gone though all my high's and low's. And I hope that this story helped you grow in some way. Which leads to my next item on the list.

I've read all your reviews, and it has occurred that many of you want a sequel. Which I'm happy to write. If there are any ideas for what should be included in the squeal, please leave me a message :)! And I'll keep you guys updated.

But a squeal is in works and some one-shot's will be based off this story

Again, thank you so much for everything you guys have done for me. Its been an amazing journey and I can't wait to continue it.

Stay safe and know that you are all amazing!