Tragedy Ever After

Losing Sight of What's Good

        ~Donnie's POV~

     Raph was somehow more stubborn than Leo who had run off five minutes ago, I wasn't sure why. I could feel myself getting more tired by the minute. My twin ran back in, accidentally ramming into Raph, giving me and Mikey a break from the snapping turtle's unending attacks.

     "Let's go," I urged my baby brother to take off, me on his heel. Thanks to me being taller, I got to a familiar alley before he did, skidding to a stop as I saw a figure crumpled in it.

     My head tilted curiously as I stared at the unmoving body, letting my eyes adjust to the dark. My body tensed as I realized who it was. It was a human, but it wasn't my human: it was April.

     "C'mon, I know a better shortcut," I stopped Mikey before he could peek around me into the alley. He looked at me confused but followed me anyway as I turned down a separate path that led to Y/n's apartment.

     With the building in sight, we slowed down to catch our breath. It wasn't fun climbing four flights when you're already exhausted. The apartment was nearly silent, but I could pick up the hitching breaths in another room.

     "Angelo, can you go straight to your room? I need to talk to Y/n, but I'll let you know when it's okay to come out, yeah?" Mikey looked concerned, but slowly nodded.

     I entered the living room, seeing my human on the couch rocking themself to try and calm down. "Y/n?" they didn't even look at me, no hum of acknowledgment either. I moved closer to them, crouching in front of them. Their head was tucked into their knees and their arms were keeping their head trapped there.

     Y/n was muttering to themself but still had not noticed my presence. "Y/n?" I raised my arms, gently wrapping my fingers around their wrists to try and pull them from their head, and they let me. "What's the matter, love?"

     They shook their head, biting their lip to hold back another sob and tears welled up in their eyes. "Is there anything I can do to help you feel better?" their hands twitched as they tried to make a sign. They did it over until I understood what they meant. Water. They needed water.

     I almost felt proud that they had been learning some sign language. I wasn't sure where they found the time, they always seemed too busy. Something that concerned me, though, was the fact that Y/n had to have passed through the alley April was in. I thought them that shortcut.

     Did Y/n kill April? Hell, I would have too, but that meant my human wasn't as innocent as they had been. The state they were in, however, showed me that they regretted it, in a way, anyway.

     "Here," I handed them the fresh water after I cracked the lid off. They took greedy sips of the liquid, trying hard to cure their dehydration from crying. I wouldn't tell them I knew, even if I was secretly proud that they had gotten rid of such a huge annoyance for us. I wouldn't let it slip to Mikey, either.

     "It's gonna be okay, Y/n," I held their cheek gently, feeling them lean into it. I could feel how sticky their cheek was from the tears that could barely stop flowing. "You're okay. C'mere," I sat cautiously next to them, pressing my forehead to theirs, lightly brushing my nose against theirs.

     My arms wrapped around them carefully, waiting to see if they denied the contact. When they didn't, I pulled them into a light hug. They let out a sniffle, letting their eyes close before copying the gentle nuzzle motion I was making.

     "You know I will love you no matter what, right?" I was certain they had said the same thing to me once. "You're my human. I don't care if you've done the most horrible thing in the world, you saved me. You gave me a home. You showed me love. Whatever it costs, I will love you."

     I heard them choke back a sob, slightly pulling back as they gave me a broken smile. "No matter what?" they whispered, brows furrowed slightly.

     "No matter what, love," I pressed a gentle kiss to their forehead, holding my lips there for a moment. They hummed softly, wrapping their arms around me.

     "Don?" their voice was still quiet, and they seemed to be debating their next words. "I killed her," they were nearly silent as they confirmed what I had already assumed. My hand ran through their hair as I continued to hold them close.

     "I know," I kept my voice just as quiet. "It's gonna be okay, though, I promise," I pressed another kiss into their hair.

     "What was that by the way?" they pulled back. I hummed for them to continue. "When you were trying to calm me down, the nose nuzzling," my cheeks heated up as they reminded me. "It was cute, Don."

     "I'm glad it worked," I looked away from my human while they kept their eyes on me. "And don't call me cute," I pouted.

     "But you are," they teased and I tried to pull away from them. "C'mere. C'mon Don," they pressed light kisses over my face while I heated up at the contact. "My cute little mutant," they mimicked the nuzzling I had earlier.

     "I love you, Don," Y/n told me after they calmed down from their teasing. "What would I do without you?" probably be living a normal life where you didn't kill your ex-best friend.

     "I love you, too, Y/n," I told them softly. Even with their innocence diminishing, maybe we still deserved a happily ever after, right?

     Word Count: 963. Guys, I promise, I'm gonna still try for a happy ending. Even I wasn't expecting myself to kill off April, but it happened and we're gonna have to figure out the consequences together. Well, Enjoy!