It's Chemical {Donnie x Reader} (Donatello x Reader) (TMNT x Reader)

Chapter 33 - Breathe

There is no time like the present to make a difference, young one.

Your father's infamous quote floated in your mind as you stared down at the parchment before you. New York's roads gazed back at you, just stark black and white lines against the crumpled paper.

The plan was fairly simply in theory – create a giant distraction to lure the majority of mutants to a central area and spray them with the retromutagen. Mikey's suggestion was to 'make a giant canon and shoot flaming balls,' but thankfully the rest of the team sided with your proposal of developing a mist and gently spraying it.

You actually came up with the idea weeks before, but couldn't bring yourself to execute just yet. You knew that if you found a way to revert hundreds of mutants in an instant, you would also be losing the only real connections you had left in this cold, mundane world.

Mikey. Raph. Leo. Emile. Striker... Donnie.

Donnie.

No, you couldn'tlose him. A piece of your very soul would go as well, replaced by a gaping wound.

"How's it going?" You felt two all-too familiar hands rest on your shoulders. Donnie leaned over your shoulder and glanced down at the map. "Sometimes I forget just how big this city is...," He murmured, running a finger across the paper.

You sighed and leaned against him, your head resting against his chest. "If we want to have the best possibility of reaching a vast majority of the mutants, we'll have to target the heart of the city."

"And a place where there is a lot of open space," Donnie muttered as he studied the map. "What about right here?" He pointed. "It's near the center, and several buildings have been demolished which means we should have plenty of room."

You nodded, biting your lip. The spot wasn't too far from the observatory.

"Great..." He stepped away from your chair. You could tell something was on his mind. His usual easy grin was gone and replaced with a furrowed brow.

"I guess that's the spot then." You quickly stood up from your chair. "I've got samples I need to pull from the incubator before we leave. I don't know when we'll be back and I would hate for them to expire." You headed for the door, but felt a soft but firm hand stop you.

You didn't want to hear what he had to say. You knew the difficult conversation that the both of you had been avoiding for the last couple of days.

"Y/N."

No, you weren't going to have this conversation. Not here. Not now. You couldn't.

"I'd rather not, Donatello." You said over your shoulder.

He stepped closer to you. "We can't keep avoiding it."

"Why not?" You snapped, "We've been avoiding it just fine so far. I can't do it, Donnie."

He sighed lightly. You could feel his eyes trailing across the back of your neck. "Yes, you can. This time tomorrow, everything will be different. We will wake up to a new world, one filled with the promise of a brighter future. A future that you need to be part of." He gently turned you to face him. "Once restored, humanity will be in a state of disarray and chaos. People will need help and guidance, they will need you. And unfortunately, humans will be humans. There is a reason why my brothers and I have lived in the shadows for so long. We will help and do what we can in the dark, but I fear that we will still be seen as the infamous monsters of New York..."

You glanced at the ground as your voice quivered, "..when I started my research all those years ago in my father's lab, I swore to find answers to the unanswered questions of the universe. I promised that I would better humanity, that I would help whenever I could. It was my solemn oath. Now that I am forced to uphold that oath, I've found that I am caught between healing mankind and...being happy. It's a choice that...I can't. Not after everything has been taken from me. I refuse to lose you as well." A sob caught in your throat as you swiftly sat back down in your chair, covering your face with your hands.

You heard the scraping of a chair being dragged a short distance as Donatello seated himself across from you, placing a warm hand on your knee.

"You are the most wonderful thing to have ever happened to me, Dr. Y/N. I will forever be enamored with you. I have been inspired, driven, and motivated by you. I never knew..," He trailed off, distracted by a tear now freely falling down your cheek. Using his thumb, he gingerly brushed it away and cupped your face with his hand.

His voice softly cracked as he continued, "I never knew that sunshine would reach all the way down in this hellhole." A finger danced with a wisp of your hair as he studied your face. He was a devout follower revering his muse. The object of his adoration, the subject of his fascination.

"...You deserve to be in the sunlight, thriving and flourishing among your people. I won't let you live casted to the shadows. Go be among the living and help humanity recover. All of the hurting people, they will need you y/n. "

You shook your head, another tear falling. "No, Donatello. Please, please don't do this."

He smiled softly, sorrow etched throughout it. He placed a soft kiss on each of your cheeks, your salty tear being wiped away by his lips gentle touch. "No goodbyes then..."

His sullen eyes met yours. You swore that sunshine danced in his eyes every time he looked your way. That's what he was to you -sunshine. Home. Hope. Hope for a brighter, happier future than what your past had been.

You threw your arms around him, hugging him close to you. His body heat felt so warm, so inviting. You buried your face in his neck, his breath brushing across your ear.

"No," you softly mumbled. "No goodbyes...I will see you once this is all over."

He nodded, placing another kiss in your hair.

Another voice broke the silence that hung between you two, "Donnie, we've got everything ready." Leo stood in the doorway.

Donatello nodded as he stood up, his warmth leaving you. "We've finalized the plans. Tell the others that we're leaving."

Leo glimpsed at you, "Y/N, my brothers and I could never thank you enough for what you have done for both New York City and our family...you have become one of us."

You smiled slightly, blurry eyed as you rose up from your chair. "Your family has become my own. I would do anything for you guys."

Leo grinned as he left the doorway and started down the hall.

A warmth filled your hand as Donatello clasped it. "No matter what, we're in this together."

"Always," You breathed.

You followed him out the door and to the living room where the others waited. Anticipation hung heavy in the air for what the next few hours had in store.

You were about to breathe life into humanity.