April didn't know what to say. A mixture of hope, disbelief, and anger swirled within her. Hope that Casey could be alive at that moment, disbelief because it didn't seem possible, and anger that he hadn't tried to contact them during all that time. "Are you sure?"
Elly nodded. "Positive."
"Tell me everything you remember. Please." April closed her eyes as she thought through this new turn of events. "It's very important."
As Elly opened her mouth to recount the tale, April held up a hand. "Wait. Let's go to my place. We can call my friends and they can listen too."
Hesitantly, Elly stood. "Okay. But I have to be home by lunchtime or else my parents will get worried. Actually, scratch that. They're already worried."
April chuckled as she led the way out the door and down the streets to her apartment. "I understand. My dad used to be very cautious about where I went. I was barely even let out of his sight most of the time."
When they arrived at the living space, April called her friends and made sure it was on speakerphone. They picked up on the fourth ring.
"April? What's up?" Came a slightly less than high-pitched male voice. He sounded distracted, like the call had disrupted something important.
"Hey, Don. I need to talk to you about something." April held the phone between her and Elly.
A sigh. "Look, April . . . I'm sorry about the other night. We all are. We should've been more understanding."
April sucked in a breath, then let it out to calm herself. "It's fine, Don. I should've just explained how I felt instead of running out crying like a little girl."
"Don't beat yourself up about it. We were the ones in the wrong."
"No, I–"
"Shhh! I'm talking with April."
Elly frowned, wondering who was bothering April's male friend.
"Who's there, Don?" April asked.
"Raph. He wanted to know why the TV won't work, but I don't know."
"Well, call him back in with the others. I have someone here to talk to you."
"Okay," he complied. The next thing the girls heard was Don yelling for the "guys" to join him in his lab. Thankfully, he must've held the phone away from his face because it wasn't as loud as it would've been if he'd kept it near his mouth.
A great amount of shuffling and mixed dialogue was heard on the other end until Don finally said they were ready.
"Hi, guys," April greeted. "I have someone here with me who's going to tell us something important." She handed the phone to Elly. "Go ahead."
"Um . . . hello. I'm Elly." She didn't really know how to begin, so she introduced herself since April hadn't.
"Elly from the dungeon?" A familiar, scratchy voice, the one that belonged to the brother named Leo, asked.
Elly glanced at April. "These guys were with you the other night?" April nodded. "Yeah, that's me."
"How are you doing?" He sounded like he genuinely cared, which made her smile. He and April asking her how she felt made her feel warm inside. It was nice to know people who wanted the best for her.
"I'm much better. Thanks for asking. I'm so grateful to all of you."
"So . . . what do you want to tell us?" Another voice, this one sounding childish, inquired.
YOU ARE READING
「ABSENCE」 TMNT 2012
Fanfiction"Come back!" She screamed. But the voices only left her farther behind. For months she's waited, never giving up the thought that they'd come for her. Others had related to her the tales of how they'd come to be. She knew, deep down, that they w...
