Together As Mutants (Book Six)

Chapter 59: Think

"You know, Diaval, if you're ever looking for work, we could use another teacher at the dojo. Your archery skills are unmatched," Karai says. Once again, her and Shinigami have taken on the job of driving Melanie and Diaval to the airport.

Diaval frowns. "I...live in Canada...?"

"You could move back," Shinigami suggests, turning to look at them in the back seat. "You'd be closer to everyone, right? It could be good."

Melanie sighs wistfully. "I have always liked the idea of living in a big city."

Diaval frowns. "Mm, maybe."

Melanie lightly touches his arm. "We'd have to give it a lot of thought, though. Maybe I could start looking into jobs. We don't have to make a decision right now."

That's true. They have to talk about when to have the wedding, whether they want to have a longer engagement or not. There's a lot on the horizon.

"It was just an idea," Karai says. "Don't stress too much. Shini and I plan to have the dojo around for a long time."

"Mm, true."

Diaval zones out for the rest of the drive, letting Shinigami and Melanie talk about wedding stuff as he stares out the window. He has a lot to think about.

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Summer comes to a close. Destiny slows to a stop next to Leonardo as he watches the horizon, headlights like an endless river in the fading evening light.

"So, Splinter set a date, huh?" Destiny muses.

Leonardo nods. "September 29th. Happy early birthday to us?"

"I think a ninjutsu mastery ceremony is a fantastic way to celebrate turning nineteen, don't you think?"

He doesn't answer, lips pursing. "Do you think we're ready?"

She stares at him for a second, slowly raising an eyebrow. "Absolutely."

"I don't feel like a master."

"Leo..." she drones, sagging against his shoulder and pressing a kiss to it. "You're a fantastic ninja, a great leader, and you're already becoming an amazing sensei. Don't stress about it, for once in your life, and just...let it be."

He looks down at her and smirks. "Since when did you get wise?"

"I think it's the dragon tanto, honestly. Also, I've been listening to that Beatles vinyl lately? The one Mikey found in the dumpster. You know," she says, starting to sing, "the...let it be, let it be. Let it be, let it be. Speaking words of wisdom...let it be~"

She snickers and he kisses her forehead. "You're silly."

She leans closer to him, eyes sparkling, tail wagging. "Well, you're—"

"That doesn't look like patrolling, guys!"

Raphael's giant green hands appear in their vision, shoving them apart, and Destiny snarls playfully at him as she regains her footing. Leonardo rolls his eyes, shoving his brother back as he hops down from the ledge.

Raphael jerks his head to the side with a smirk. "I get it's quiet, but you never know where the next big thing is hiding. Gotta stay vigilant!" he insists.

"Calm down, Nightwatcher," Leonardo says.

"Hey, I might make him a reality if your sorry shell keeps slacking!"

They hurry off across the rooftops and Leonardo tries to lose himself in his brother's joy, in Destiny's laughter.

There's just so much to think about.

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"Taylor, can we talk?"

Taylor doesn't trust the way Carmela and Jack are looking at her, but she takes a seat at the kitchen table anyway. Héctor is still at work, absent from this impromptu family meeting.

"Since senior year starts up for you soon, I thought now was a good time to mention it," Carmela says. She casts Jack a wary look. "Have you thought about what you're going to do after graduation?"

Taylor shrugs. "I figured a trade of some kind."

She loves music, but being a musician isn't something she wants to make a career out of. Besides, if she's going to have a life with Raphael, she needs to be the breadwinner for the both of them.

Jack nods, mostly to himself. Carmela smiles. "And...as far as tuition, any plans?" she prods.

Taylor squints, skeptical. "Why?"

Jack sighs. "Your mother and I set up a college fund shortly after you were born. I thought that after I lost my job, the money had stopped. It turns out...your mother was still putting money in."

Taylor's eyes widen.

"When I found out, I contacted her," Carmela says. "Just in case it was a mistake. Turns out, it isn't. Bianca wants you to use it for whatever you would like to study."

Taylor hopes it's a small amount of money. She hopes it's something small enough that she can feel okay in rejecting it. "How much?"

"Around $50, 000 last we checked," Jack exhales.

Holy actual shit, Taylor thinks. Outwardly, she just gawks.

"Now, look, I understand if your first thought is to refuse," Carmela says, "but ninã, I can't stress this enough, but...you can't throw away your future because of your mother's mistakes."

"Some of that money is from when your mamá and I were together," Jack pipes up.

Taylor's hands form fists on the tabletop. "If I use it, what if...what if she blackmails me later? Uses it against me?"

"That's...the other thing," Jack sighs.

He pushes a white envelope across the table. It has Taylor's name written on it, scrawled in black pen. Taylor opens it, too curious to resist.

Inside is a pink card decorated with dahlias and, still inside the card, a cheque for $800. She tries not to stare at the money, focusing on her mother's words.

Princesita,
Please know I've taken your words to heart. I'm going to focus on my little girls, but please let me know if you ever want to chat!
Consider this your birthday gifts for the last eight I missed. I heard you have a tattoo that might need some work, but if you want to use it for anything else, please do!
I hope one day you'll forgive me <3
Mamá

Taylor stares at it. God, it's like a slap in the face, but hey, there's an extra hundred in there to make up for her mamá still not knowing how old she is. She should rip the stupid cheque up, set it on fire, but reading the line about her tattoo, it's like she can feel that stupid purple dragon crawling and coiling itself around her arm.

Maybe she should just take it and deal with any consequences later.

"Thanks for letting me know," she says quietly, folding the card with the cheque still inside. She slips it into the envelope, taking it with her when she stands up. "It's good to know that I have some options."

She has a lot to think about.