it's you i like! (jonatello)

this isn't over, o'neil

donnie swept the laboratory with his eyes. not one thing stirred, not one thing moved.

quicker than anything, a flash of movement drew his attention. something - or someone - was here. he ripped away the blanket it had hidden under, only to find nobody there. but one thing; a hair, so thin it was only noticeable because of the purple lights bouncing off of it.

he didn't need to run any tests or prepare any microscope inspections to know whose hair this was. april had been skulking around his lab, without a shadow of a doubt. he flicked away the tiny shard of DNA and slipped into the shortcut running from his lab to the surface, the same one he had taken casey down to review his wounds. he pulled his staff from the sheath suspended across his shell and brushed one claw over the switch that would extend the naginata blade in the end, but he didn't press it fully. he knew he could never really kill april, despite himself. unknowing why, he made a beeline for casey's apartment. luckily, his father wasn't home. sighing with relief, he pulled open the window with relative ease and crawled inside.

casey looked up from a paper on his desk and smiled at the entering turtle.

"hey D." the raven-haired boy greeted him, choosing not to bring up the awkward interaction the night before.

"hi casey. whatcha working on?" donne asked, looking over casey at the paper.

"math homework," he said with a frown.

"when's it due?"

"why's it matter?"

"answer the question."

"next wednesday," casey sighed.

donnie grabbed his wrist and dragged him out of the window without another word.

"DUDE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" casey shrieked, trying to wriggle free.

"i'll do the paper for you tommorrow night. you're coming with me." the purple clad turtle deadpanned without looking back.

the two descended into the lab, only to find april standing in the center, with a weird facial expression that was a strange hybrid between pissed and smug.

"april, what the hell are you doing here? you know very well you aren't allowed in here anymore. splinter's words, not mine." donnie spat.

"if i cared about what you wanted," the kraang-mutant girl hissed. "i would have followed your rule."

"guys, stop. this is dumb." casey said; he stepped in front of donnie just in case april tried anything.

the scarlet-haired girl wordlessly shoved casey out of the way. before donnie could react, her fist met his snout, sending him stumbling back. after recovering, he grabbed his bo and deployed the naginata blade, using the hidden switch on the side.

april scoffed, easily disarming him and throwing the staff on the ground. she then darted behind the purple turtle, opening her tessen and creating a long, deep slit across his shoulder. time seemed to pause, all eyes stared toward the wound, which seeped with scarlet rivers, flowing down his arm. stars swam in donnie's vision before it all went black. what seemed like a millisecond later, april was gone, and he was in casey's arms, bridal style on the couch.

"i really don't know what happened," casey said, his voice wavering like he was about to cry. "she cut him, and then he just blacked out."

raph studied donnie's almost completely limp frame before sighing in response. "we'll just have to keep him resting, no work until the wound heals."

donnie growled in protest, but he wasn't yet awake enough to form a coherent sentence. ultimately, he knew his brothers wouldn't listen if he tried to contradict them; resting it shall be.

casey carried the tired purple turtle into his laboratory, setting him carefully on his bed. the raven-haired teen kneeled beside it, resting his elbows and head on the mattress.

"are you okay?" casey asked softly.

"physically or emotionally?" donnie responded with his own question.

"emotionally."

the purple clad turtle sighed, lying his head back to stare up at the ceiling. "i don't know at this point, man. it's like my whole perception of the world has been flipped upside down within the span of, like, four days."

"yeah. i'm sorry." casey said, being followed by a few minutes of silence.

"y'know, i'm just now realizing something-" donnie said, shifting to a sitting-up position on the bed, looking down at casey who was still kneeling on the floor. "we've been romantically interested in each other for almost a week now; but did we ever even officially become a couple?" donnie asked, racking his brain on he and casey's conversations over the past few days.

"no, i don't think we have." casey said.

"so does that make us official?"

jones only responded by reaching up and pulling the other into a kiss; no words were needed otherwise.

the two released each other long after they needed air, clearly not caring about that right now. or ever.

"you should go to your room and sleep," donnie suggested, shifting on the bed and grabbing his comforter.

"i'm not sleeping alone." casey declared, crawling into bed with donnie without waiting for a response. the purple clad turtle didn't protest, it's not like he would have wanted to deny his now-boyfriend.

casey closed his arms around donnie's chest, not caring about the hard shell against his own. he gently rubbed circles into donnie's plastron until he could hear the turtle purring lightly in sleep.

the black-haired teen smiled at the sound. relaxing and shutting his eyes, casey eventually let sleep wash over him like a tidal wave at midnight, engulfing every ounce of consciousness and sending him into a deep sleep beside his lover.
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A/N: happy pride month yall! sorry for this chapter being suuper short, but i rlly jus needed to get this thing updated lmao byebyee! <3