MMNT

21

"WOOOHOOOOO!" 

"YEAH!"

"LET'S DO THIS!"

"COME ON, APRIL!" I yell at her happily.

That's right, she insisted on coming training with us today. She stops, panting to catch her breath with her hands on her chest. "I... never thought turtles... could be... so... fast!"

"Come on," Mikey says. "This is just the warmup."

"For two hours?!" April asks. "Sara, how do you keep up?"

"I dunno," I reply. "Just being on several missions, maybe."

"It's just what ninjas do," Leonardo says. 

"Then I wanna go with you," April says.

"Maybe April should come with us," Donnie says. "It makes sense."

"Not a chance," Leonardo says. "It's just too dangerous."

"Yeah, what if something happens to her?" Raphael agrees.

My mind starts to feel a pulse. "Guys!" I warn them.

"What is it?" Leonardo asks me.

"Somebody's watching us," I say. "Behind us!"

The turtles look too, and we can clearly spot a man taking pictures of us.

"Get him!" Leonardo orders.

We begin a dramatic chase among the rooftops desperately trying to see where that man is going, in that he keeps hiding in darkness. After about two buildings, though, we make out that it's a man in a suit. He goes down a fire escape and enters a building through a window thinking he lost us. We watch him from the rooftop, also waiting for Donnie and April who fell behind.

"Let's go," Leonardo says. 

We climb down the fire escape to the floor where the man went in, and stay there shortly. I can also notice that April is struggling to hang on to the edge of that fire escape. Leonardo takes out a fine blade and uses it to get the window open and goes in quietly. I follow him, and then the turtles do, just as quietly. Then, April goes in landing with a slightly louder thud.

I get up and, staying close to Leonardo and Mikey, notice the pinboard on the wall which has many pictures printed in black and white. 

And those pictures are of us.

"What the hell is this for?" Raphael asks.

"It can't be good," I say and spot a picture of myself crouching on the edge of a rooftop looking down, about to take out my katana. "Though if you ask me, these aren't bad at all."

"I don't know about that," Mikey says. "I look kinda fat in this one. Oh no wait, that's Donnie."

"Very funny," Donnie replies.

Then, another picture below the one I was looking at calls my attention. It's of me again, with my regular clothing, walking in the street. And my dad, Dante, is walking beside me.

I take the picture from the pinboard and hold it in front of me. I tightly close my eyes and feel the grip on the picture tightening, when Mikey squeezes my shoulder and looks at me sweetly. I lightly trace his shoulder in gratitude, and Mikey steps away revealing a concerned Leonardo in front of me. Though my mask hides it, I smile at him.

There's pictures of all of us, either talking, hiding, even laughing. There are pictures of April alone too, at school or at the street.

"Well, guys," Raphael says loudly and on purpose, "looks like there's nothing more to do here. Let's just go."