Hey There, Delilah

Chapter 8: Light at the End

Dill walked into the Abraco from the Staff Door. They knew that Delilah had practically passed out onto the couch the moment she switched the sign from "Open" to "Closed." That being said, they expected Delilah to still be there. They weren't wrong, they just didn't expect Raph to be there, too.

"Oh, um... Hey there, Raph..." Dill stated, standing dumbly in the doorway. Raph was holding Delilah to his chest, sitting on the couch where she had fallen asleep. Dill was confused.

"Hey," Raph nodded. Dill approached the two and sat in a nearby chair. "She went to the lair and geeked out with Donnie for a bit, something about Code," he explained, sitting up straight. "I brought her back here and we hung out for a bit before she..."

"Crashed?" Dill finished, smiling.

"Yeah. Crashed."

"She's very fond of you, you know." Raph laughed.

"Donnie did a good job at pointing that out, here for not even 24 hours..." Dill laughed loudly.

"People start leaving their houses around 6:15, and it's 5:30 now. I suggest heading out the staff door around 6, is that okay?" Raph nodded.

"Yeah. Thanks for looking out."

"Not a problem. We're cool, might as well look out for y'all." Raph scoffed a laugh. "Want anything?"

"Um... Quick cappuccino?"

"Sure." Dill left their chair and started the machine. "She already made sure everything was nice and in order?"

"Yeah."

"Of course she did," Dill laughed.

♦️♦️♦️

Raph sat alone on his bed, thinking about the interaction between him and Dill. He was confused about what they meant, about Delilah acting childish then having to talk to her about it. It was beyond him. Mikey entered his room and sat next to him.

"Hi, Raphie," he stated sleepily. Raph scoffed at the old nickname.

"Hey, Mike," he responded. "You lost a lot of energy."

"I'm tired..."

"I can tell," Raph chuckled.

"You were gone for forever..." Mikey whispered as he leaned into Raph, who put his arm around his littlest brother.

"It was an hour and a half."

"Still... Forever..."

"You're back," Donnie stated, leaning in the doorframe of Raph's room.

"Yeah, I am," Raph responded.

"Can I sit next to you?"

"Sure." Donnie pushed himself off the frame and sat on the other side of Raph. He was close enough for Raph to put an arm around if he wanted. "Want me to hug you, too?" Raph asked, half-joking and half-serious. Donnie paused.

"Yes please."

"Mikey, we're clumping, could you move a little?" Raph asked. Mikey smiled and sat up.

"Its been forever since we've done that..." Mikey whispered, rubbing his eye.

"Yeah," Raph agreed. He adjusted so he had his legs nearly flat against his bed and his shell against the wall.