And, Love

Part 2

"Eyy!" You cut across the street, waving madly. "My favorite turtle!"

Mikey brightened when he saw you, the phone in his hand went dark. Arms opened wide.

"Bring it in, boo!"

You left into his arms, feeling him squeeze, shake you a little. "Babe!"

"You guys are ridiculous." Raph rolled his eyes, arms crossing.

"You're just jealous." You stuck your tongue out at him as Mikey lowered you, hands steadying you as you took a step back. "Let's see." Your eyes scraped them all over, taking in their costumes.

You frowned. There were more scars than before, than last year. That seemed like an odd detail to emphasize on when there were more convenient things to add. Like more fingers.

The suspicion you'd been harboring for the last year grew. You grabbed Mikey's hand, ignoring the chuckles from the brothers as you looked at the make up more closely. Sober.

Eyes widened, dropping his hand, moving to Leo.

"Uh..." He chuckled uncomfortably, leaning away as you scrutinized him. "W-what'cha doing champ?"

"Old man." Mikey teased.

"Just..." you hummed at the long, thin scars over him. Turned to Donnie, taking note of the way his eyes shifted, the scars on his fingers, burns on his forearms. "You know." You turned to Raph, who eyed you with warning. "Just admiring the details." Chunks of gapped scar tissue from blunt force trauma.

"We, uh." Leo looked at his brothers with urgency. "Spent extra time on them this year."

"Mm-hmm." You leaned back, arms crossed. You sighed, looking at them all. "I thought we had something, guys." You motioned between them and yourself. "I thought we were building a relationship based on mutual respect and trust."

Donnie rolled his eyes, shaking his head as he chuckled. Raph and Mikey seemed confused. Leo looked horrified.

"They aren't costumes." You deadpanned.

Raph stood, posture turning intimidating. Donnie put a hand out to stop him. Leo glared at his brother in red, shaking his head.

You turned your gaze to Mikey, who just shrugged. "Looks like you found us out."

"Michelangelo!" Leo hissed.

"I mean," Donnie shrugged, "he would have found it out eventually. Especially if we keep meeting every year."

"Thank God too, man." Mikey exaggerated a breath of relief. "It was getting hard to find excuses to not send selfies." He scoffed, "I mean, could you really imagine this perfect complexion marred by a pimple?"

You snorted.

"I guess," Raph added, "that would actually depend on how he feels about us still."

You noticed Mikey tense, hands stilled. "Uh, so..." he looked at you. "H-how do you feel about us? Still?"

You blinked, took a step back. "Hmm." You posed as though you were thinking. "I dunno-"

"Ah, stop." Mikey grabbed you, pulling you under his arm. "We're besties. You can't deny it."

You sighed, going partially limp as he steered you towards the group. "I guess I can't." You shrugged, grinning up at him. "I'm stuck with you."

Mikey beamed at you, eyes crinkling, cheeks puffing out. You took a breath, looking down at your hands, stamping down the butterflies.

"How's the boy band working out?" You kicked yourself. It was the first thing that came to mind.

"Not great." Mikey shrugged, making you sway. "The other three have quit."