Turtles In The Roaring 20s

Chapter 2: Backstage

Donatello rushes into the backstage makeup room and closes the door behind him. He approaches the wall of mirrors, lit with small light bulbs, as he rubs his face, still doing his best to calm his nerves before the show starts in a few short hours. He hates getting like this. He especially hates when his dad passes it over like it's nothing; But still, in a way, he's right. Donnie has been doing this for a while now -- yet he still gets stage fright. Regardless, he reminds himself that it's all worth it once he gets his paycheck at the end of every month.

"Did Pops yell at you for 'taking a break'?" a cocky voice asked.

Donnie jumps and turns to see his older brother, Raphael, sitting on the leather couch in the room, smirking at him as if he already knew the answer. Raphael usually hides before the show, not wanting to go on stage. Donnie must have missed him when he walked in, for he seemed to have been sitting there for quite some time. Raph was dressed in a suit, similar to Donnie's, but with a dark red vest and black jacket. His white collared shirt was unbuttoned on the top, as his red tie hung loosely around his neck. A lit cigarette butt was resting between the fingers of his right hand. He was not ready for the show tonight, like always.

"No," Donnie said as he turned to look at his brother. "But I think he's going to yell at you for not being ready on time, again!"

"Ooooo, I'm so scared," Raph said with a frightful overreaction before taking a drag on his cigarette, inhaling deeply and letting out a plume of smoke. He glances over to his brother and pulls out the pack of cigarettes in his jacket and offers him a bud. Donnie accepts, takes one from the pack, and Raph lights it up with a strike of a match. Donnie sits on the arm rest of the couch, joining his older brother as they smoke.

They smoke in silence before Donnie looks at his brother, "I'm worried about Dad."

Raph sighs, "Me too."

"He's been under so much pressure recently..."

"That doesn't mean he has to throw his stress onto us," Raph says with a grumble. "Look at you! You're a nervous wreck!"

"You know why I do this," Donnie says, taking another hit, "If I earn enough money I can-"

"Heyyy!" A young voice sings, bursting into the makeup room, interrupting the brother's conversation. It was Raph and Donnie's youngest brother, Michelangelo, dressed in a white, long sleeved shirt, brown pants with suspenders, and a bright orange bow tie. A beige vest and a matching newsboy cap completed his ensemble. "Have you guys met the new waitress yet?" he asked excitedly.

"No," Raph said with a glare, "And I don't want to."

"I did," Donnie answered, a slight smile grew on his face, "I ran into her in the hallway a few minutes ago," his face began to blush. "She seems nice..."

"Nice isn't enough," Raph says, taking another hit of his cigarette, not before Mikey quickly takes the cigarettes out of his brother's mouth, "Hey!"

Mikey grabs Donnie's too and throws the butts to the floor, putting them out with his shoes. "I told you guys to stop smoking these things!" Mikey says, cleaning up the ashes on the floor.

"What's the big deal?" Raph asked, annoyed. "It's not like they're gonna kill you."

"Yeah! It's 'Doctor Recommended'!" Donnie added.

Mikey rolls his eyes, "Anyway, I think I'm going to go say 'Hi' to the new girl before the show, welcome her to the family, you know?"

"Be careful with her," Raph says, "Casey told me a little about this girl. Apparently she's a huge fan of ours. Those ballistic fans can't always be trusted."