Complete Turtle Overload (TMNT Book 5)

"I'm Sorry..." (Naomi POV)

“Lilly!” I cried again, chasing after her. She was fast for her size. Although she was slightly smaller than Mikito, she could sure run as fast as I could when I’m on a burst of speed.

Finally, I actually lost her. Her footsteps were nowhere to be heard, nor her breaths. Now I had to use my mind reading, sadly. On my own daughter too… Something I hardly ever wanted to do. Although she could block me from her mind, I could easily detect her brain waves anytime.

Concentrating, I closed my eyes and searched. Walls. Concrete. Raph coming up behind me, trying to find us. Lilly in the corner, panting with exhaustion from the run and trying not to cry. She was in a tunnel not even five turns down. How could she have been that quiet?

Bringing my mind back, I cautiously, and silently, came up to the tunnel, peering in. The tunnel was a dead end. It ended up going to a building, the same one Sophie had been hiding all her life.

But Lilly didn’t know this, so when I came into view, she turned and snapped at me, “Get away!” She tried running down the tunnel, but gave up, coming back slowly with her head down. “You knew, huh?”

“Yep,” I nodded, crossing my arms. “And I can always find you, so I don’t know why you’re running…”

“Because I can’t believe you!” Lilly cried, looking up. Her eyes were starting to get watery and I knew were about to start flowing any minute now. “You killed Reiley!”

“I did not,” I said. “Shredder did. And you would’ve had the same fate eventually.”

“Why didn’t you just leave me?” Lilly choked out, trying not to cry. “You knew I liked Reiley!”

“Even if you had stayed, she still would’ve died!” I growled lowly. “And I liked her too. I was her first friend out there when nobody was!” Lilly stared at me, like this part of my tale was new and nobody else knew, and she was the first person I was telling. “But she met other friends. Sophie with us, then Mikito. Even though my sisters didn’t exactly approve of her, she approved of them and actually wanted to get to know them.”

Staying silent, Lilly listened. Then, she finally said, “You said you didn’t want to take care of a child… Why didn’t you just crush my egg?”

“Because you’re still a life. Especially one that I helped create.”

Raph came up then, blushing a little as I finished my sentence. Lilly glared at him and I backed up toward him. Pausing her outburst for a second, looking at us both. I wasn’t even sure what to say for once as we looked back at one another.

“He helped….” Lilly blurted out painfully, pointing at Raph. “He helped with me!”

“You weren’t exactly a mean-to situation, Lilly,” Raph said calmly. “It just…” he rubbed the back of his neck. “Happened…. You just happened…”

“I know! And I don’t see why if you didn’t want me in the first place!” Lilly sliced her hand in the air like she was chopping something. “You should’ve just ended me!”

“No,” I said pointedly. “Just because you’re an accident, does not mean we don’t want you. We do.”

That hit Lilly this time. Or she was tired of holding it in. But what for whatever reason, she started crying. Her head hit her palms and she started bawling. Her mind opened up at this time and I could see the very short life she had lived… Too short, but at least she has stopped growing…

Coming up and ignoring her thoughts, I hugged her close. She barely touched my chin, she was that small. She would grow, I knew, but as for when… I have no idea.

She cried into me, hugging me back. Her shudders racked my own body, even though she barely moved, and I teared up, knowing I’d hurt and changed her. My own thoughts were clouded. Time seemed to fly by.

Before I knew it, Raph came up hugged us both. Even I was shocked at him. I looked at him and he smiled only barely and nodded his head once in understanding. Girls were a question the entire group of boys would never solve. Drama and tears, mysteries and secrets.

But I nodded back, tearing up more and dug my chin into the top of Lilly’s head, wrapping my arms around her tighter to make her come closer. She had slowed her crying, but she still shuddered.

“Lilly…. I’m sorry…” I muttered, looking up.

Hearing me, she squirmed a little to back up and look up at me. I looked down as she asked, “Why?”

“Reiley, your past, my past, your future, our future, and what you’ve gone though already.” I sighed.

“It’s not your fault, Naomi.” she said, tilting her head a little like I would at times without my knowing.

“Oh, but, Melanie…” I smiled, knowing the name I had prepared for her especially came out finally. “It is. This whole ordeal happened because of me.”

“Melanie…?” Lilly repeated. “Is that…?”

“The name I, myself, had intended for you,” I nodded. “Shredder called you Lilly.”

Her green eyes widened a little, looking at Raph. She smiled, her teeth flashing happily through her wet face. She hugged up again, burying her face into my shell. “Melanie it is.”