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“Run Lizzie,” you squealed as you pretended to run fast beside the tiny two year old careening around the Lair. “He’s coming!”
In the tunnel behind you, maniacal laughter rang out as the evil wizard closed in. Lizzie’s tiny feet picked up the pace and her effervescent giggles couldn’t be held in her tiny body. Her ringlets bounced as she kept trying to run faster. Grabbing her up in your arms you picked up the pace and ran at top speed, laughter bubbling out of you as the toddler began to scream in joy.
“You’ll never escape!” Came the faux evil voice from behind.
Running to the staircase you surged up the steps and promised yourself you would start working out more. Tucking Lizzie against your side tighter, you ran across the metal catwalk hoping to get to the slide at the end before the wizard caught you. If you could reach the bottom of the slide then you would win!
Lizzie’s scream cut through your focus as a darkened form landed in front of you, cloak fluttering dramatically. The evil smile of the wizard was all that was visible from beneath the hood.
“Give me the princess,” the wizard laughed.
“Never, foul villain. I shall protect her with all that I have,” you yelled, turning and shielding Lizzie as she laughed eagerly. There was a small gap between the wizard and the opening for the slide. Controlling your breathing you pivoted your foot slightly and fixed your hold on the squirmy toddler in your arms. You would only have one shot at this.
“You’ve failed!” He laughed, raising his arms dramatically. “You haven’t reached the magical slide, the only place that protects her from me!”
“I haven’t failed yet,” you smirked as you faked right and swerved around him, spinning out of his tag and running for the slide. Swinging Lizzie in your arms so you held her like the princess she was, you slid down the slide to freedom. What you weren’t accounting for were the lumbering forms of Leonardo and Raphael to be passing at the base of the slide as you both came screaming out. Knocking the hulking red bara’s feet out from under him, the force sent him flying backwards as your screams of joy turned to gasps of alarm. There was no way his shell and weight wouldn’t cause some damage. You curled Lizzie tighter in your arms preparing for the ouch, only to feel arms tuck around you and pull. Leo, in his ever vigilant ninja mode had reacted on instinct and turned the surprise attack into a save. Now you were the one being held aloft like a princess.
As often happened when the leader in blue was around, you felt your face flush and your heart beat faster. He had no idea how he affected you. Lets hope if he noticed it now he would attribute it to the near death encounter. As Raph cursed up a storm with G rated words since Lizzie was around, Leo set you back on your feet.
“I take it the princess is safe,” he mused, eyeing you both. You loved the deep, calming resonance of his voice. You could listen to him for hours.
“Of course!” You affirmed happily, snapping out of your moment and bouncing the giggling toddler on your hip. “But thank you for saving us from being flattened by the ogre.”
“Who you callin an ogre Shorty?” Raph growled standing up, right as the wizard came shooting out of the slide’s tunnel and knocked his feet out from under him again. There was no one to stop him from falling on his victim this time and the wizard was effectively flattened. The curse words went from G rated to R real quick as you cupped one of Lizzie’s ears while Leo cupped the other. Her laughter rang throughout the Lair making everyone stop and smile. She was such a little bundle of joy.
Raph jumped up and grabbed the wizard’s hood and yanked it off. Mikey grabbed his face and began screaming in fake agony.
“Noooooo! Nooooo! My beautiful face has been revealed to the Princess, now I won’t be able to steal her princess powers!”
“Key wooses!” Lizzie yelled, raising her little fists.
“That’s right your majesty, Mikey loses,” Leo agreed.
“Eeo save us!” She said grabbing his cheeks and smiling. “Give pwincess power up!”
“You want to give Leo your princess power up?” You asked with a blush. “But I’m the one who beat the wizard!”
“Eeo stop Waph from making us pwincess pancake,” she giggled.
Seeing that you wouldn’t be declared the winner of the game you agreed with the tiny tiara wearing tot. “OK, your highness, you take that cheek and I’ll take this one.”
Lizzie had been obsessed with the princess power up ever since she had watched it on some random cartoon with Mikey. The two had created the tag game and decided that the winner would get the power up move, a kiss on the cheek. Realizing you were finally going to get to give Leo a kiss, your nerves amped up by a thousand. You grabbed one side of his mask tail, while Lizzie grabbed the other and pulled. Mikey was often the recipient of a power up so he was used to the protocol, but Leo had never played the game before.
“What’s a pow—”
His question was cut off mid sentence. Instead of your lips landing on his cheek like they were supposed to, he had turned to direct his question to you and caught your lips with his. Lizzie’s lips smacked his jaw with a resounding pop, but yours lingered for several moments. Pulling back, eyes wide, you could see he had frozen, unsure with how to proceed. Time seemed to slow down as he scanned your face. You were doing the same and could read the growing panic in his expression.
Lizzie’s giggle startled you back into the present as you stepped back from Leo’s rigid form and released his mask.
“Whoa! Looks like Leo is frozen,” Mikey gasped popping up beside you and plucking the toddler from your arms. “Did you freeze him Princess Lizzie…ARE YOU ELSA?”
Spinning her around quickly with squeals and laughter, Mikey stopped and eyed you and Leo mischievously. You knew that look and nothing about it boded well for you. Leo still hadn’t moved, staring into the void and you knew he wasn’t going to be of any help here.
“If he’s frozen then the only thing that can thaw him is an act of true love,” Mikey said excitedly to Lizzie. “Quick, think fast!”
With a speed you would never get used to, Mikey swept your feet out from under you and you felt gravity take hold as your body fell backward. Unlocking from his frozen state, Leo grabbed you again before you could hit the floor.
“Mikey!” His voice bellowed.
“It worked!! Mikey responded, bounding off with Lizzie squealing over his shoulder. Raph stood awkwardly to the side as Leo released you and walked away. He never looked back and you couldn’t help but feel like something had been fractured in that moment.
“Just…give him a minute,” Raph supplied after Leo rounded the corner. “Leo’s never been real good with emotional stuff and you just hit him with a whammy.”
“It…it was an accident. I was aiming for his cheek like Lizzie and I always do with Mikey.”
“Yeah, well, Leo ain’t Mikey,” he said rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably.
Nodding you turned to follow Mikey as Raph followed after his brother. You found them in the kitchen, Mikey chugging a soda as Lizzie chugged her sippyy cup. Donnie walked in beside you and lowered his glasses at the sight.
“Please tell me that’s water and not anything with sugar, April will kill us if she doesn’t go to sleep tonight,” he murmured.
Slamming their respective drinks on the counter at the same time and releasing a giant “ahhhhh”, Mikey answered. “Dude. One cannot celebrate with water!”
“Mikey,” Donnie threatened.
“It’s warm milk, dude! The perfect bed time celebratory beverage!”
“Dee! Dee! Da-Dee!” Lizzie called out, holding grabby hands towards Donnie. He moved in an instant and scooped up the little girl, nuzzling her close.
“Let’s go start winding down sweet girl,” Donnie cooed as he held her tightly and dimmed the lights with his gauntlet. He reclined on the couch, with Lizzie snuggled close, and began telling her a bedtime story in soft, soothing tones.
“How did Casey take it when she started calling Donnie ‘daddy’?” You asked as Mikey came to stand beside you taking in the scene.
“About as well as he did when he figured out her initials are ELLO,” he said sadly, watching his brother.
That had been a bad day in the Lair. The guys were having a first birthday party for Lizzie and Mikey had made a banner with her name, blocking out the capitals of Elizabeth “Lizzie” Laurel O’Neil in bright pink. ELLO blared out glaringly and Casey picked up on it immediately. The turtle genius had been a sore subject for the detective because he always suspected him of holding feelings for April…and her returning those feelings. That night had ended with yelling and mom and baby crying.
April and Casey hadn’t lasted past the infatuation phase and by the time the relationship was over April found out she was pregnant. The two decided to coparent as best they could, but Casey was never really excited about it. He had told April repeatedly that he didn’t want to be a parent because of his own childhood. When he realized Lizzie’s name he fully withdrew. The crazy part was that April hadn’t even realized it when she named her. Her mother’s name had been Elizabeth and her grandmother’s name was Laurel.
Casey hadn’t been back to the Lair since that night and he and Donnie avoided one another at all costs. Any time they crossed paths at April’s for baby drop off or pick up it was always tense and ended in tears. Casey had been picking her up less and less, and had recently just started sending money through Venmo with flimsy excuses about why he could’t watch her that weekend. You knew when Lizzie started calling Donnie ‘daddy’ it was truly the end, but as you watched the pair cuddling on the couch you thought that maybe it had all worked out in the end. Now if only the adults would figure things out and make this puzzle complete.
“Wish he and April would hurry up and quit dancing around each other and just kiss already,” Mikey whispered.
“You a mind reader and a wizard there Angelo?” You asked with a laugh.
“Naw, just saying what we’re all thinking. Speaking of kisses…wanna explain that princess power up smooch I saw back there?” He asked slyly.
“It was an accident!” You whisper yelled.
“Like you didn’t love it,” he snickered.
“Yeah, well, Leo didn’t love it, that’s for sure,” you responded glumly.
“Give Blue some time. He’s not used to being a chick magnet like me,” Mikey laughed as you joined his joy. It was hard to be sad around a living bundle of energy.
By the time April arrived from the end of her shift, Lizzie and Donnie had both conked out on the couch. Separating the toddler from her giant bodyguard was no easy task. Even in sleep, Donnie’s hold on her was immovable and secure. With Raph’s help Mikey somehow managed it, but ended up in a headlock as the genius snored on. Laughing lightly, you and April began to make your way back home, leaving Raph to try and save his brother from being smothered to death.
Being April’s neighbor was how you had first met the turtles. Mikey had guessed the wrong balcony after April had moved to a bigger apartment. Because of his mistake, the brothers found themselves in your living room while you had a mouthful of ramen and chopsticks raised in self defense. The rest was history.
Arriving home, you gave the brunette a hug and Lizzie a kiss on her forehead and entered your own apartment. Dropping your bag on the counter, you began the process of settling down from an evening with the guys. Being around them was always an experience and every day left you wondering how lucky you were to know them and be part of their lives. You couldn’t begin to imagine what a life without them looked like, which is why Leo’s reaction left you feeling so uneasy. It felt like a game a Jenga and moving the wrong piece could send the whole tower crashing to the ground.
Pulling out your phone you shot a quick text off to the guys letting them know that you, April, and Lizzie had made it home safely and to be careful on patrol. You opened a separate text to Leo and sent him a quick message as well.
Sent (10:17 PM):
Hey. Listen, I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to upset you. Princess Power Up is a game that Mikey and Lizzie invented from that cartoon they like to watch so much. It was supposed to be a kiss on your cheek, but well…you turned your head and…yeah. So, don’t stress about it. I’m not upset or anything. We’re totally cool. But…I don’t want you to be upset about it. Truly.
Be safe tonight Blue.
Plugging your phone in to charge, you went to brush your teeth and wash your face. Climbing into bed you checked to see if he had responded, but saw that the message was left on Read and felt that Jenga feeling grow.
Maybe it wasn’t that bad and you were just overthinking it.
Maybe.
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Maybe you were wrong is what you were. It had been three weeks. THREE. WEEKS. And you hadn’t seen shell or sword of the blue banded turtle. He always mysteriously disappeared when you turned up.
At first his brothers had shrugged it off, but even they started to tense up when you walked into the Lair and asked about Leo. The final straw was the day you saw him retreat to the dojo and hurried to catch up so you could talk in person. Yet when you entered the space it was empty, as though he had vanished. That was the moment you realized he wasn’t just busy, he was avoiding you.
So you stopped asking about him. You stopped looking for him. You stopped communicating on the group text and would just text the other brothers individually or in pairs. Finally you just decided to stop going. After three weeks of silence you could take a hint, and your heart was broken.
“I don’t understand why you won’t come down!” Mikey whined. “Lizzie is here and we can’t play the princess game without you! Plus it’s movie night and we’re watching Raph’s favorite, Tangled!”
“That is NOT my favorite!” He yelled in the background.
“Don’t even lie, bro, you know you love Rapunzel. You were all invested the last time we watched it and yelling about her feet,” Mikey countered as you listened to them argue.
“Because she’s running around barefoot the whole movie and she got them tiny feet, of course I’m gonna yell!”
“You two are hilarious, but I really can’t come down tonight. We’ve got the street fair tomorrow at the book shop and I’m over here making wands out of cut out stars, ribbons, and long sticks,” you said as you glued yet another star to a stick. “We’re anticipating even larger crowds this year so I’ve got to keep working.”
The annual fall street fair was a busy shopping day for the store and all of the businesses on the street. Everyone went all out to make it a special event for the patrons. The street was blocked off and small carnival rides and booths were set up. Up and down the street children were laughing with their families while eating cotton candy, candy apples, or large pretzels. Bags of goldfish and balloons swung happily in the air as autumn leaves danced on the chilled wind. It was a day of absolute magic and wonder and you loved it.
Each store participated by putting together a BINGO board. When shoppers made a purchase, they earned a stamp on their board. Completed BINGO boards won prizes and gifts while they were available. Prizes could be anything from baked goods to gift baskets, all donated by the shops on the street. It was a wonderful moment of New York being the beautiful place that it was to live. Having prizes for the kids was always a surefire draw to get parents to come in and buy something. With every purchase from your book store the kids would receive a star wand which they could take to the art studio next door to color.
“April is coming to do a report for Channel 6 and everything,” you continued, giving your newest creation a magical swirl and adding it to the basket of completed ones. “It’s good business for the shop and we’re approaching the Christmas shopping season next, so I have to give this my full attention. You want me to be able to afford a good Christmas present for you this year, right?”
“Ughhhh, I hate it when you make sense. It’s not fair,” Mikey groaned.
“Listen, why don’t you come over Sunday evening and we’ll have dinner and watch Hotel Transylvania with Lizzie. April has to do the late report and I’m babysitting. You can listen to Lizzie say ‘blah, blah, blah’. It’s adorable,” you said, feeling your cheeks widen with your smile.
“Can we all come?” Mikey asked tentatively.
You didn’t answer immediately. You couldn’t. It’s not that they weren’t all welcome, it’s that you didn’t think they would ALL come. And you didn’t know if your heart could take the rejection yet again.
“Of course Mikey. All of you are always welcome,” you said softly, trying to hide the resignation, but hearing it anyway. You didn’t want to come off like a sad sack, but your heart was utterly broken.
“You OK?” He asked after a few minutes of silence. You could tell Raph must be listening too because it was way too quiet from the boisterous sounds you had heard previously ringing out as they prepared for movie night.
“I will be,” you said after a few moments. “Listen, I need to finish these wands. I’ve seriously got to make about a hundred more before I can go to bed and tomorrow is going to be a long day. Love you Angelo. Tell Raph I love him too.”
“Love you Princess,” Mikey said sadly, then with more humor he added, “Raph, she said she loves you too."
“Yeah, yeah, enough with the sappy. I love ya too Shorty, now finish ya work and go to bed. I got some business to take care of,” Raph yelled from the background.
“Business? Mikey what is he talking about?” You asked curiously.
“Ummmm…I have no idea, but I love you and I’ll talk to you later BYE!” He yelled, but before the phone cut off you heard, “Raph, don’t—”
Well that sounded like nothing but trouble.
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Saturday’s street fair was nothing short of magical. It was the true definition of a magical New York day. Your smile started at 8:00 AM and was still hanging on as dusk settled and you were straightening up the shop. The store showed signs of a busy day with multiple empty spots on racks, books improperly shelved, pillows askew on the floor of the reading nook, and ribbons from the star wands littering the floor where too many twirls had caused them to flutter free. It was glorious.
Pulling down the security window shudder that Donnie had installed after a break-in a few years ago, you flipped the sign to closed and started the process of cleaning up. Was it aggravating that books were in the wrong place, yes, but did it bother you? No. It meant life had been here and you were happy to replace the books in their proper place. You straightened the couch back into it’s spot where it had been moved from all the readers that had lounged on it today and put the pillows back where they belonged. You loved the cute little pillows that had tiny turtles wearing scarves sitting on pumpkins. You knew when you saw them that you had to have them, as well as the matching Christmas ones with turtles wearing Santa hats and beards. Mikey and Lizzie adored them.
You began collecting all the trash together and sweeping the floor of all the debris, reminiscing of all the happiness you had felt and how freeing that feeling was. As you swept you decided you weren’t going to let Leo’s attitude toward you deter you from doing what you loved, and you loved going to the Lair and spending time with the guys. Your heart was still stuck on the leader in blue, but if his wasn’t, then there was nothing you could do with that. That was his choice and one he was allowed to have. Did it hurt? Yes, more than you would ever be able to articulate. But what hurt worse was not being around the turtle family that had become your own. So as you swept up the remnants of a truly good day, you decided you were going to push through and put the faux pas behind you and hope that Leo would eventually come around and be your friend again.
Emptying the dust pan into the bin you looked under the counter and saw the greatest take away from the day looking back at you. Several of the Knicks players had come to the street fair with their families. You kept a Knicks poster under the counter at all times just in case any of them ever came through the store. You were able to secure seven signatures today and multiple selfies with the players which you planned to send to the guys when you arrived back home. You could already hear Mikey’s reaction and grinned even more when you thought about gifting him with the poster for Christmas, matted and framed for him to hang in his room.
Glancing at the security camera before you took the trash out back to the bin to make sure the alley was clear, you were surprised to see the shape of a shell taking center stage on the screen. You recognized the Kanji markings from the grainy black and white footage and felt your breath catch. The joy of the day tried to dim, but you resolutely pushed it back and decided to put your new plan into action.
Lifting the heavy bag you made your way to the back. Opening the door, you smiled genuinely at the surprised face of Leonardo who was mid pace and looked as though he had been giving himself a pep talk to face you. It hurt to know that he was having to pump himself up for a conversation, but you kept your smile steady and made contact with his eyes.
“Leo! What a pleasant surprise! I didn’t expect to see you until tomorrow!” You said happily as you began hauling the bag of trash to the dumpster. Rushing over, he took the bag from you and tossed it in as though it were a crumpled paper ball.
“Show off,” you mumbled and were pleased to hear him release a chuckle in return. “Wanna come inside? I’m still cleaning up from today.”
“Uh, yeah, yes, please,” he mumbled and rushed to open the door for you. You made sure to give him space as you entered, but smiled at him in thanks.
“Can I get you anything? Water? Tea?” You asked walking into the small kitchenette area and getting a bottle from the fridge for yourself.
“Sure,” he responded quietly as you handed him the bottle in your hand and retrieved another.
“What brings you by on a solo mission tonight Blue? I’m surprised Mikey didn’t tag along to see if I had any wands left over for him,” you chuckled.
He stood there quietly, fiddling with the cap on his bottle of water and not making eye contact with you. The silence stretched as you stood awkwardly waiting for whatever he wanted to say. He furrowed his brow in thought and opened his mouth several times as though to begin, but words never formed.
Your mind immediately went to the worst possible scenario…he was going to tell you that you couldn’t come back. You had somehow crossed an invisible line you didn’t know was present and severed all you loved. Your stomach felt hollow and you felt the need to somehow correct this wrong you must have perpetrated.
“I’m sorry,” you blurted out quickly, causing his gaze to jerk to yours. “I’m so sorry Leo. I didn’t mean to upset you so badly.”
“What?” He exclaimed.
“You’ve been upset with me…since that night, and I’m sorry. It really was an accident. Lizzie was supposed to kiss one cheek and I was supposed to kiss the other,” you explained hurriedly. You were trying to keep the trembling out of your voice, but the way his face contoured into a frown the more you spoke had your heart sinking with every word you uttered. “It’s a game Mikey and Lizzie made up. We play it with him all the time. I didn’t mean to upset you so much.”
“You think I’m mad with you?” Leo questioned after you had finished.
“Well…,” you began, clearly confused. “I mean…you haven’t spoken to me since that night, and you wouldn’t respond to any of my texts, and you wouldn’t come out when I came to the Lair, and you HID from me when I saw you go into the Dojo and I know there’s no way out, and—”
“OK, OK, I see why you think I would be mad with you,” he said cutting you off, then more to himself you heard him say, “Wow, I’ve really made a mess of this.”
He began rubbing the back of his neck and gestured to the small table, pulling out your chair before taking his own seat.
“You don’t have to apologize and I was never mad with you,” he finally started, still not making eye contact.
“Then Leo, why? Why did you cut me off unless you were mad with me about it?”
“I was…overwhelmed,” he said, finally looking up at you. He couldn’t hold your eyes longer than a few seconds before once more looking at the bottle in his hands.
“Overwhelmed?”
“Yes,” he answered in a whispered breath.
“I don’t…I don’t understand,” you answered after his silence lingered.
“I know who I am, more importantly I know WHAT I am, and there are certain things that I knew would never be available to me. So when you kissed me…my mind struggled to process that moment,” he said quietly, still looking down. “I didn’t handle it well and so I’m the one that owes you the apology. You never owed one to me.”
Silence once more descended over you both as you processed his words. Did he really feel this way? Did he really believe himself unworthy of being kissed? The more you took in his humbled state and thought about the life he and his brothers had lived, the more you understood why he would feel the way he did. It explained why Donnie had never made steps to pursue April when it was so obvious he was in love with her and she with him. None of them felt like this was something they could have.
Standing, you walked over to kneel at his feet. His eyes lit up in surprise at your move, but you took his cheeks in your hands and kept his gaze directed at your own.
“Leo, you don’t really believe that…do you?”
“Of course I do, look at me,” he uttered pitifully.
“Leo that’s just not true,” you responded, but he shook your hands free from his face and stood to leave his seat, walking around you.
“I get that you’re trying to be positive and everything, but this is one of those situations where you’re wrong, and I’m sorry about that, but you’re wrong,” he said with a sweep of his hands as if it were final. Standing up you confronted him head on and grabbed the mask tail closest to you.
“Now you listen to me Leonardo, that’s just absolutely not true! Who said that you and your brothers aren’t deserving of things like kisses and love? Is that the real reason why Donnie hasn’t ever accepted April’s advances? You do know she’s in love with him right? And I know he’s in love with her.”
Pulling his head to try and relieve his mask from your grip, you pulled harder and kept him stationed in front of you.
“Who? Who told you that you don’t deserve this?” You asked sternly, maintaining eye contact.
“No one had to tell me, it’s just the way it is! Look at me!” He yelled, slamming his hands to his plastron.
Quiet filled the room, save for the sound of his frustrated breathing.
“Leo,” you whispered, stepping closer and laying your hand on top of his. Gripping his fingers tightly you could feel him trembling. There was only one way to cut to the heart of this and no matter how he felt about you afterwards, he needed this affirmation more than you needed validation.
You pulled on his mask tail once more, drawing him closer. His eyes widened and he sucked in a quick breath realizing your intent, but not stopping you. Tilting your head slightly, your eyes slid partially closed as your lips grazed his. It was a small, soft press of lips. A connection, but one unlike any other you had ever had. Pulling back slightly, you felt when his body leaned forward momentarily, but then retreated as though this was still something he wasn’t allowed. Deciding once and for all to banish those thoughts, you pulled him closer once more and delivered a kiss that was sure to seal your heart’s fate to heartache, but hopefully rescue his from it.
Firmer, tighter, you pressed your mouth to his fully. No longer was your kiss tentative and light, this kiss was the one you had been seeking all along. You released his hand and mask and secured your arms around his neck as you breathed him in.
Pulling back, you kissed a trail along his cheeks, over his eyes, under his jaw. With each press you whispered into his skin.
“You are worthy of love.”
“You are deserving of kisses.”
“You are beautiful.”
“I’m so thankful you exist.”
“My life became so much better the day I met you.”
By the time you retreated to collect your breath, you found Leo curled around you, head buried in your throat, arms secured around your waist, and shaking all over. Tracing your fingers over his head and down his neck, you waited for him to calm down, occasionally pressing your lips to his skin and feeling the tremors renew once more.
He sat down heavily in the chair and pulled you with him, straddling his lap, face still buried. Feeling tiny droplets hit your skin and rolling beneath your collar, you began lightly running your fingers over his skin once more. How long you stayed in this position, you weren’t sure, but time ceased to matter. Then only thing that mattered was making sure Leo was OK.
His breathing evened out and he pulled back from your throat to connect his eyes with yours. You had always loved Leo’s eyes. Their icy blue color had always captured your attention, but nothing about them was ever cold. The look in them now was so innocent and unsure. You felt the question in them before he spoke.
“Do…do you mean that? All of that that you just said?” He whispered brokenly.
“Yes,” you said cupping his cheek and feeling him lay his hand on top of yours. “Leo, while that first kiss may have been an accident, it was something I had been hoping for for a while now. I can’t explain how much I have fallen in love with you, but I only know that I have. If you don’t feel the same, I understand, and it’s OK, but you NEED to know, that if you do ever decide to fall in love that you CAN.”
The more you spoke the more his expression became stunned. You could tell he was overwhelmed, much as he had been when you first kissed him. He lowered his head and his breathing became rapid. You could tell his eyes were moving back and forth and the shaking in the hand on your own increased.
Holding on to the strap of his katana sheath, you anchored yourself to him in case he tried to run. You weren’t going to let him run from himself or this issue any longer. You wanted him back, whether as a friend or as more, you didn’t care.
“Leo,” you whispered. “Come back to me.”
Jerking up with a gasp he looked at you fully as if finally seeing you. “You’re serious,” he whispered, his voice tremulous. “You don’t care about what you see on the outside.”
“Leo, I love what I see on the outside,” you answered, drawing a hand down his plastron and tracing the grooves you found. His breathing stuttered in response. “You may not believe me, but I find you extremely attractive, from the top of your head to the bottom of your feet. I love every scale, scute, and groove. I love the way your hands feel on my skin, I love the strength in your arms when they’re around me, and I love the way your mouth feels pressed against mine. And I’ll tel you as often as I have to until you finally believe it.”
Steeling your courage you finally uttered the words that would decide your fate. “I love you,” you whispered against his mouth.
You could see the moment he finally relented and sighed out as he crushed you against his chest, sealing his mouth over your own. His kisses were unrestrained and reckless, clearly unsure, but passionate in their delivery. You held him throughout his fumblings and curious searchings, soft noises of affirmation leaving your throat without your consent when it felt too good not to. He made his own sounds when feelings overwhelmed him. His confidence grew and the kisses grew slow and syrupy, dragging along your mouth and stealing the breath from your lungs.
You didn’t know how long you sat wrapped up within one another, but you never stopped or slowed any of his advances, allowing him to take whatever he needed from the well of your heart. You didn’t know if he reciprocated your feelings, but knowing you were the one to reassure him that he was worthy of love was worth more.
Finally, the kisses slowed, the lingering feel of his hands running over your sides and up your back settled around your waist, and his breathing evened out. He connected his eyes to your own once more and the warmth that pooled there stole your breath away.
“I love you too,” he whispered. “I have for so long, but I never thought there was any way that you could ever, would ever, return those feelings. But you’re here, and you don’t care about all the things that should make you run away. You love me for them any way.”
His confession turned from soft whispers into delighted exclamations.
“I’m sorry I ever made you second guess how I felt for you, and that for even one moment you had to doubt your place in our lives,” he said, kissing you on the forehead with no hesitation. “If it’s OK with you, I would like your permission to keep on kissing you and loving you for as long as you’ll let me.”
“I’d like that very much Leo,” you happily responded, grabbing him tightly in a hug. Standing up he spun you in a circle before placing you carefully on your feet.
“May I walk you home?” He asked politely.
“You may,” you responded with a smile.
Hurrying through the final stages of closing went a lot faster with Mr. Clean on your side. With laughter and conversation flowing, you turned off all the lights and made sure all of the doors were locked before finally venturing outside. Picking you up like a princess, you smiled at the memory of how all of this began, and held on tightly as he completed his rooftop run to your apartment. Landing lightly on your balcony, he opened your window for you and waited like a gentleman for you to turn on a light and return.
“I’m so glad you stopped by tonight Leo,” you said cupping his cheek.
“So am I,” he affirmed, kissing your palm. “I know I’m still new to all of this, and there’s a lot I have to learn and figure out, but I hope you will be patience with me because I want to pour my attention into this, into us.”
“Well you’re doing great so far, but if you ever want to stop by for a study session, I wouldn’t say no,” you laughed lovingly.
“Oh yeah,” he whispered slyly leaning in and sealing his mouth to yours once more. You wondered, not for the first time tonight, how easy it would be to tempt him to take a bigger step forward. Was he ready for that? Were you? With the slow press of his tongue against yours you were more than ready to find out.
Just as you began to pull him through your window and felt him giving in to your advances, the sound of your neighbor’s window opening had you both pulling apart and staring in surprise as another terrapin suitor backed out, mouth firmly sealed to the scantily clad form of one April O’Neil.
His glasses were askew and his overalls were only buckled on one side. Dark bruises were visible on his neck and lipstick clung to his skin.
“Donnie?!” Leo asked in shock, causing the two to disengage from their fervent kisses.
“Leo?!” He gasped back. “This is, I mean, I was, ummm, checking on Lizzie, and April had had a bad evening, Casey was being a jerk, and so I just came over to make sure she was OK, and well, one thing led to another and we, I mean, well—“
“We’re together now, Leo,” April supplied, having watched her beau stumble long enough. “Got a problem with that?”
“No,” he answered smoothly, the tension leaving his shoulders. “Took you two long enough.”
“Wait, what are you doing here?” Donnie asked, finally stopping long enough to take in your situation. Your hands secured on Leo’s biceps, your faces flushed, it was easy to see what you had both been doing before being interrupted.
“Just saying goodnight Don,” Leo said, pressing a kiss to your pout realizing your original plans had changed. At Don’s squawk of surprise you started smiling.
“Well it’s about time,” April said, propping up on her windowsill.
“Don’t act like I’m not going to grill you later,” you smirked as she began blushing and straightening her shirt collar. “Brunch, tomorrow, no backing out, and I want details O’Neil.”
“Hey now, wait a minute!” Donnie interjected, but April shushed him with a finger to the mouth.
“Donnie, don’t act like Leo’s not going to do the same thing when you two leave,” April smirked. “I’m not embarrassed and if I’m right, he’s got questions for an entirely different reason.”
Leo’s face darkened at the implication and you felt a bubble of laughter leave you. Kissing his cheek you whispered, “Go easy on him sweetie, he’s still figuring it out too.”
“Yeah, but you know Donnie, he’s a quick study and very thorough,” April grinned smugly, pulling the tallest brother in with ease and planting a smack on his mouth. You watched as he caved in to her easily and bowed his body to her will.
“OK, I love you both, but that is something I really don’t want to watch. Donnie, we’ve got patrol and you need to air out because Mikey and Raph are going to pick up on ALL THAT really quick,” he said gesturing to Donnie’s obviously rumpled appearance. It was clear what the two had been doing prior to Donnie’s exit for patrol.
“And I will see you tomorrow,” Leo said addressing you. Kissing you soundly, he pulled back with a smile and the two brothers executed a backflip fluidly over the side of the building to begin their nightly duty.
“Show offs,” you mumbled. Sighing deeply and propping up in your own window, you stared into the night.
“Do you really want to wait until brunch to hear how it was or do you want to come over now? We got Lizzie to sleep about two hours ago and let me tell you that was time well spent,” April smirked.
“Let me put on my pajamas and I’m coming over!” You gushed, slamming your window down and running to change.
Amid giggles and whispers, cups of coffee flowed and secrets were shared. Feeling your face flush at the implication of some of April’s secrets, you had never been more excited to see Leonardo and move forward at whatever pace he wanted to set. You couldn’t wait to experience it together with him.
When you finally climbed beneath the covers of your bed, face flushed at all the joy you had experienced in one day, you heard your phone vibrate on the night stand. Picking it up, your smile deepened and tears pricked at the corners.
Leo (12:03 AM):
I love you.
Sent (12:03 AM):
I love you too.
Truly, it was the perfect ending to your fairytale day. Maybe princess power ups worked after all.