The Words That Hurt Me

Twenty Six Tea Cups

They slept well past noon, the previous days of 'natural camping' really took a lot out of them. Mikey distantly heard the pigeons squawking when he felt Leatherhead wake, still being half asleep himself. He nearly woke up, but was soothed when he began to stir and fell back asleep.

When he did wake up, he found himself swathed in Leatherhead's arms. This time, the gator's attempts to soothe his partner failed and he fully woke up. Mikey flushed as he looked up at Leatherhead, cuddling further into his partner.

'Partner,' Mikey smiled, 'His partner.'

"Good morning, Michelangelo," Leatherhead purred, "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah!" Mikey squeaked, ducking his head down, "Better than I have in a while,"

"Good," Leatherhead whispered, rubbing Mikey's shell. The turtle pushed himself up, pressing a soft kiss to Leatherhead's snout, causing the gator give him a toothy smile. Leatherhead nuzzled into Mikey's neck, making him giggle as he licked up the side of his face.

"Mikey!"

The couple jumped, scrambling to sit up and identify the source of the voice. Goo cleared their throat at the door, catching their attention.

"Can you make some breakfast?"

Goo looked like they just went through a category five hurricane, their hair beyond frizzed and marks on their face. Mikey guessed they slept hard last night.

"I'll-I'll be there in a minute!" Mikey shouted, stifling his laughter, while he stumbled out of the nest. Mikey stretched deep, feeling the satisfying pops throughout his body while making his way to the pile on the floor, Leatherhead following soon after.

He quickly put on his gear, grabbing Leatherhead's arm and walking with him to the kitchen. Goo had already found their way there, staring into space at the table. Mikey considered waving a hand in front of their face.

Instead, he picked over the underwhelming options in the pantry, trying to think up something decent to make with such a pitiful selection. Eventually, he decided to make something simple, grabbing pancake mix and the vanilla extract he stored here in case something like this happened. He really wished he had gummy bears.

"Goody, are you alright?" Leatherhead asked, a concerned look on his face. Goo turned their head, but made no effort to make eye contact with anybody.

"Ye,"

"...Are you sure?"

"...Ye,"

Mikey quietly laughed, quickly stirring up the mixture.

"How many pancakes you want Leather?" He asked, interrupting the gator's worried gaze. Leatherhead gave him a soft smile.

"Just a few is fine, Michelangelo,"

"Alright, Goo?"

"Just one," Goo mumbled, resting on their arms.

Mikey hummed, heating up the stove.

"Are you going home today?" Leatherhead asked suddenly, making Mikey flinch. He chewed his lip, slowly nodding before turning to face the table.

"I'm gonna take Goo around our part of New York first," He said, "The scrap-yard, the rooftops, Lou Mike Tony's Pizza...oh! And Murakami's!"

He turned back around and poured a bit of batter into the pan. It sizzled nicely, bubbles popping up soon after.

"Then I'll go home,"

"I see." Leatherhead tapped a claw on the table. Mikey could feel him watching him, quietly observing him work. He ignored the feeling, plating the singular pancake and placing it in front of Goo.