TMNT- Life-Breathing . Chp 1

A/N: I hope you guys like this. I am really like where this story is going and it seems to flow pretty easily… though I am not so sure about this chapter really (sweatdrop). Tell me what you guys think of it. Also, your feedback was most helpful; thank you so much (bows).

Life-Breathing

Chapter 1 Life Goes On? (Pt 1)

August 29th 2014.
3:10 am; Sunnyside Diner, Brooklyn...

"Here you go hon," said a sweet but flirty waitress to a hooded stranger as she politely slipped is ordered dish on top of the table before him, "Turkey sandwich on rye with a side of french fries. Is there anythin' else I can get for ya, sweetie? Maybe somthin' ta drink?"
The stranger looked up at her from his seated position, his gentle but powerful blue eyes, much like the bluish gray skies of a fading storm scanning over her face swiftly. Even though a great deal of his face was hidden behind his dark hooded jacket and his scarf, the waitress had a feeling that he was smiling at her. She knew that the man was a mutant… but for a mutant, he sure seemed like a good-looking piece of man-meat… well, from what she could see of him anyway.
"Actually, yes," The nameless mutant said in a polite but strong voice, despite the fact that his words were somewhat muffled by his knitted scarf, "I was wondering if the name 'Splinter' means anything to you? Do you, by any chance, know anybody by that name?"
The blonde, voluptuous waitress blinked down at the man before she crossed her arms underneath her bosom, her baby blue eyes turned towards the ceiling as she thought on the name. It was a very odd and memorable name; if she had heard of it, she would have remembered it, without a doubt. She looked back down at him with an apologetic face while shrugging her shoulders, "Sorry, hon. Doesn't ring any bells."
The mutant's eyes sadden slightly before he turned back to his meal; his posture slouched a bit with minimal defeat before he spoke again, "Oh… I see."
The blonde lightly tapped her lower lip in thought, visually taking in the stranger for the umpteenth time since he had entered the diner twenty minutes ago. Besides having the physical physique of an athlete or a hunk, he appeared to be a bit… lost. He would have reminded her of a run-away teenager if it wasn't for the fact that he looked and carried himself like a man in his mid to late twenties. Perhaps he was a criminal on the run? That would explain why he was covering his face so generously in a place as public as a diner.
She thought on that for a quick minute before mentally dismissing it; he was far too shy and polite to be a criminal and far too comfortable with his surroundings to be classified as suspicious or shifty. Maybe he just recently became homeless, putting everything he valued in a duffle bag—which lay on the floor just beside his feet—and he was in search for someone that could help him? Perhaps the 'Splinter' he was looking for was someone that he was told could help him?
…Or maybe she was just running with her imagination on this one?
"Hey doll," She said sweetly, coaxing those gentle blue eyes to turn to her once again, "If you need to get in touch with someone or find someone, I know this guy that can help ya. He's a private investigator with his own braggin' rights."
His eyes seemed to brighten ever so slightly at the offer, "Really? It wouldn't be too much trouble if I asked for his assistance, would it?"
The waitress couldn't help but blush a little at the stranger's politeness, "Well ain't you just the sweetest thing, and no, it won't be any trouble. He needs to get off his fat, lazy behind after that long ass vacation he took a couple of months back anywayz. I have to warn you though—he don't do this kind of stuff for free."
The mutant nodded with understanding, "That's fine. How much does he charge for his services?"
'Huh… so much for the homeless theory,' She thought, raising an eyebrow curiously, before answering him, "About $40 to $60, give or take."
"Hmm… that shouldn't be too much of a problem," The stranger said, his voice laced with mirth as he bow his head her direction formally, surprising her once again, "Thank you so much, miss."
"It's no problem, hon," She smiled widely down at him before lightly jerking her chin in the direction of his plate, "Now eat up while I go get his card for ya."
He chuckled, "Yes ma'am."
---
9:43 am; The Hamato Residence, Manhattan
"……"
"…Raph—"
"Shh…!"
"……" Sigh, "Raph, you're not going to hear anything."
"And why the hell not?" said the most muscular of the turtle brothers, momentarily removing his ear from his fiancée's abdomen to look up at her with a raised eye ridge.
"Didn't I tell you the same thing for Dorothy?" Mona said, her face scrunched up with playful irritation as she stared down at him, "You're not going to hear anything until five to six weeks into the pregnancy. It's only the second week, babe."
"…Well that's stupid," Raphael grumbled, pressing his ear to Mona's abdomen again, his face scrunched up with concentration as if doing so would improve his hearing somehow, "This is my kid we're talkin' about. They should be makin' noise as early as conception."
Mona Lisa rolled her golden brown eyes as she absentmindedly caressed the back of Raph's head in a soothing manner. Her fiancé could be stubborn and illogical at times but it was never intolerable; more amusing than anything, "I'm surprised that you can comprehend such a long word Raphie."
His growl vibrated against her skin, causing the lizard lady to giggle softly, "Don't call me Raphie…"
"Whatever you say… Raphie."
"Mona…" was all Raph said before he fell quiet, opting to listen instead.
The two mutants were still in bed, too awake to go back to sleep but too tired to actually get up and make breakfast. Mona had been awakened by a curious Raphael who had unceremoniously nuzzled the side of his face into the softer area of her underbelly, right where her bellybutton was. His arms wrapped protectively around her middle as he had settled against her comfortably, breathing in the scent of her reptilian skin and waiting patiently for a heart that was far too underdeveloped to be heard. It was cute and all but…she had a feeling that Raphael wasn't just trying to listen in for their baby's first movements. She believed--well, she actually knew--;that he was being overprotective of her and their unborn child, even though they were in the comfort and safety of their own home. He only got this way when he visited his brother's grave and, considering that the day before was the anniversary of Leonardo's death, he seemed far more shielding than his usual self.
Mona sighed softly, caressing the back of Raph's bald, emerald green head again before her voice broke the silence enveloping the room, "Do you… do you want to talk about it?"
"…No," He said carefully, "I'm fine Mona. I'm just… well…"
"Yes?"
He sighed, turning his head again to look up at her with a level gaze, "I'm just missin' my brotha. No matter how much of a pain in the ass he used to be sometimes, I still miss 'em."
Mona nodded, lifting herself up in a sitting position so that she could lean down and place a gentle kiss just above one of his eye ridges. When she pulled back, Raphael's amber eyes gaze back up at her with silent curiosity, "Things will get better, babe."
"I hope so…"
----
"Aww, why do you have to be so damn cute!" cooed a certain orange-wearing, pizza-loving mutant turtle as his girl friend, Emily, sleepily shuffled her way into the Hamato's kitchen wearing nothing but a pair of black boxers and a dark orange thermal shirt that was obviously too big for her. Her chilly red hair, usually worn in a cute pixie cut, was now wild and unruly from sleep. Both of her tiny fists, hidden by the long sleeves of the shirt, had balled themselves up to wipe away the last bits of sand from her eyes before she looked over at her boyfriend curiously.
Despite the fact that Mikey Hamato was supposed to keep an eye on the breakfast he was making for the family, he couldn't help but haphazardly drop his grease cover spatula on the floor just so he could dash over and cuddle the significantly smaller other to his bare plastron. The girl let out a small squeak, barely having time to brace herself as she was hugged and snuggled like a life sized teddy bear.
"…,"Emily shook her head as she quickly got over the early morning shock, allowing her slender little arms to reach up and wrap around his neck, returning the hug with a little less enthusiasm; unlike Mikey, she wasn't exactly a morning person.
"G'morning little red," Mikey said cheerfully, pulling back slightly so that he could stare down into those deep pools of mercury. Emily reply with her own morning greeting by standing up on the tips of her toes, lightly cupping the sides of Mike's face in her petite hands as she kissed the tip of his nose sweetly.
Mikey grinned at the response before fully letting go of her, "I'm making bacon, eggs, and pancakes for breakfast. Would you like something extra? Maybe a fruit salad or a bagel?"
She shook her head—a negative response—as she politely walked past him so that she could sit at the table. He smiled after her as he when back to his task, swiftly scooping up his fallen spatula and wiping it off with a paper towel before using it again.
"So how did you sleep Em?" Mikey asked, flipped a pancake into the air with acrobatic ease, "My room wasn't too messy for you, was it?"
Emily smiled lightly at the chipper terrapin, shaking her head in reply.
"Ah, good. I've been trying to get around to giving it a full out clean but I never seem to have the time. Master Splinter has always gotten on me when it comes to time management."
Emily raised an eyebrow at him, leaning back in her chair and giving him a playfully dull expression, as if to hint towards something obvious.
Mikey pouted at the expression, "And here I thought you were on my side…"
Emily giggled lightly to herself before she sat up right again, smiling sweetly at her boyfriend as he continued to make breakfast for her and the rest of his family. Although it seemed like she was at home at the Hamato residence, she really didn't live with them. She lived in a quaint little studio apartment several city blocks away but couldn't stand the lonely of it sometimes. She hated the silence—it always got to her if she was enveloped in it for far too long. That was one of the reasons why she felt so attracted to Michelangelo in the first place: he was always talking, he was rarely saddened, and he always tried to make people laugh. He was her exact opposite and she adored him for it.
As much as Michelangelo adored the little red head, he had to admit that she was no where close to his type of woman. His type was a beach blonde hottie with tanned skin, big blue eyes, and the body of a model. Emily had the cute body type of a pixie with creamy colored skin. Her hair was the brightest, most vivid shade of red he had ever seen and her big, doe eyes were an open, stormy grey. See? Not his type at all… but she got him and understood him almost as well as his family did. She could get underneath his skin and ninja her way into his mind… and he loved every moment of it…
"Mikey?" said turtle turned to the kitchen doorway just in time to his genius of a brother, Donatello, lazily walking into the room, still wearing his clothing from the night before, "Did you start the coffee?"
Michelangelo wrinkled his nose in disgust, taking in his disheveled brother before answering, "Yeah, it's almost done and you fell asleep in yesterday's clothing? Wait… did you even sleep?"
Donnie rolled his eyes in his brother's general direction as he made his way to the kitchen table, "Yes, I slept. I just feel asleep at my lab table. I was aiming for an all-nighter but, alas, I failed."
"Epically," Mikey said with a smirk, his nose still slightly twisted at the odor Donnie brought in, "You could've at least taken a shower before you came in here, smelling like armpits, overheated computer chips, and chemical stank."
"Oh shut up you metrosexual," Donnie said irritably, taking a seat across from Emily as he did. Emily giggled lightly to herself, watching the two brother's lightly argue with each other.
"Don't laugh at him, Em. He only thinks he's funny."
Donnie smirked over his shoulder at his younger brother, "I only state what's true."
In retaliation, Michelangelo swiftly stuck his tongue out at the brainy turtle before he when back to cooking. Donnie rolled his eyes again, "Oh, very classy Mikey," He said before turning to Emily, smiling at her warmly, "Good morning Emily."
She smiled back, lifting one of her hands and wiggling her fingers slightly—a small wave of greeting.
"Are you guys going to band practice today?"
"Nah," Mikey said, answering for the little red head, "We went yesterday… and you know what yesterday was."
Donnie paused before his mocha colored eyes fell on the table; a tinge of sadness lightly touched his face as he did. The brainy turtle had gone to see his fallen brother the day before the anniversary, since he had a busy work schedule to catch up with, but he was still feeling a bit nostalgic from the visit, "Yeah…"
Mikey's smiled sadly as he went on, "So I was thinking of dropping by the grave today to paying my respects. I don't know what I'm gonna do for the rest of the day though. I guess that's up to little red."
Emily chuckled before speaking for the first time since she had entered the kitchen, "It's up to you, Mikey…"
Michelangelo almost dropped his spatula and scoop his girlfriend up in his arms once again but he resisted the urge; instead, he opted to grin widely at her. It was rare for him to hear her voice, especially in the presence of others and at this time of day. He never knew why she hardly talked; her voice was always so sweet and soothing, like warm honey.  Whenever he asked about it, she said that she would tell him the reason someday soon, she just wasn't comfortable with tell him so early in their relationship. He reluctant agreed and kept quiet about it ever since… no matter how much his curiosity was killing him.
Mikey cleared his throat, trying to hide his embarrassingly huge smile but failed miserably, "How about a movie/pizza date?"
She nodded as Donnie interjected, shaking his head at the couple, "You guys are so damn cute it's making my insides turn into mush…"
Mikey sucked his teeth, scooping a large series of bacon out of the pan and directly onto a serving plate, "No one likes a hater bro?"
"What does that even mean?" Donnie said touchily, quickly getting up—as much as his morning slowness would allow him—once the coffee maker went off, alerting all that it was finished with making the coffee. He snatched his custom made "#1 Mad Scientist" mug (… don't ask XD) from the counter top before he approached the machine as if it was the Holy Messiah himself.
"…Do you live under a rock?" Mikey retorted, staring at the back of Donnie's head with a mixture of mock anger and shock, "Wait… never mind. You live under a laboratory; same difference."
"And you need to find a plug for that hole in your face," Donnie retorted as he poured himself a mug full of liquid sunshine before he made his exit, heading back to the area that had been designated as his room/work space.
Mikey glared as his brother's shell as he slowly made his exit, "Well… your face is a hole."
Donnie's eyes rolled to the ceiling as he ignored his younger brother's last statement, shaking his head the whole way as he sauntered slowly towards his place of solace and peace—his lab.