milliways_bar | (no subject)

(no subject)

A young woman with a tangle of dark, curly, brown hair was sitting alone in a booth. Several items were abandoned on the table before her, including a small, leather-bound journal and a plate with a half-eaten chicken salad sandwich. Her bright blue eyes were perusing the pages of the New York Times, although closer inspection would have revealed that they didn't seem to be settling on anything.

She certainly looked like April O'Neil, yet if you were to judge by steely, distant expression alone, you would have easily mistaken her for someone else. There was also the matter of a certain gold locket being conspicuously absent from its previously permanent place around her neck.

~~[OOC: 4:00 PM ET - Mun is leaving work now, and going to do real life-ish stuff. Will be back in a few hours.]~~

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"No, Mikey, I mean all together. In the same place. For holidays or just... whatever. Like normal families do. Drifting apart is one thing, but just forgetting about it completely?" She sighed and rubbed at her temples. Of course, she knew why they couldn't all be together again, but she couldn't exactly say that, now could she? Aside from the obvious reasons, she was not willing to let so much blame fall on him.

"It's just like... Like you guys don't care anymore!"

"You think we're here because we don't care?"

"I think you're bastards, the lot of you." April crossed her arms over her chest, her mouth forming into an indignant pout. "And you wonder why I think you prefer Mel. You never come home, not even just to visit." She looked away again and added under her breath, "I hate this damned place."

"Well you're right about that. I'm pretty sure my parents weren't married when they decided to clutch. It's something that's taken years for me to get over, but now? Now I've come to embrace my illegitimate heritage."

The smile doesn't seem to be radiating nearly as well as it should be. He sighs, and tries another tactic: honesty.

"Look April, you know why I can't go home. Not yet."

"Yes, I know. And you know why I'm here. But he would be okay for a day, Mikey. He's a big boy." Her sigh echoed his and she slumped in her seat. "You don't know what it's like, going back. Having to tell him what you guys have been doing, so that he at least has some idea. He would never say it, but I can tell he misses you. Both of you."

Mike nods, breaking eyecontact for a moment.

"I know. He tells me."

Then he taps at his temple. Splinter always had that creepy way of showing up unexpectedly as the voice in the back of their heads.

"Do you understand why I'm upset? Why I could get to the point where I just don't want to even be bothered with it anymore? Where I think I should just leave you alone? This isn't just about me, or me and your brother-" She rolled her eyes with a subtle snort, realizing how ludicrous a concept that was. "It's about all of us. About being a part of this family and watching it unravel."

"Honestly? I'm not sure I do. And that's not to say that I haven't been listening,...I just don't know that I understand."

Mike shrugs.

"Of course you don't, you're happy as a clam," April replied, her tone slightly accusatory.

"No April, I just don't try to fight the tides so much as ride the currents. Big difference. Besides...no one really knows how happy clams are."

"Yeah, well, you're not me, Mikey." And you don't know how much this hurts. "I tried to go with the flow, and flow bit me in the ass."

"It happens. I'm not saying it's the perfect thing for everyone. I mean, heck...it nearly drowned me last week."

April opened her mouth to retort but then stopped abruptly, her brow furrowing. "What?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah...I nearly drowned last week. Got sucked right down a hot tub drain pipe.
...
It's wierd...I was never afraid of water before, but I think I am now. That's messed up, isn't it?"

"WHAT?!"

"Well, it's really the only conclusion I can draw from it. I mean, at least I think it's fear. I've never really been scared before, but that's what you call it when your heart feels like it's stopped, and your muscles lock....right?"

"WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME?!" It was rather amazing how quickly she'd made her way over to his side of the booth. "Are you alright? Oh my God, Mikey, are you serious? You're serious!"

"I haven't really been making a big deal out of it. I mean, yeah, I'm fine and all. It was just a thing. Everything's okay. There was just...there was just drowning.
...
And we lost Senior Squeakins."

"Just a thing? Just a thing? You used to be a turtle and you almost drowned. How is that just a thing? And who the fuck is Senior Squeakins?"

"He was our rubber duckie vibrator."

He'll just let that sink in for a few seconds.

April just stared at him, going completely still.

"We're not having this conversation," she said.

"We're not?"

"I would rather we didn't."

"Okay. Um...should we go back to how much you hate us and want us out of your life then?"

It would sound sarcastic coming from anyone other than Mike, but he really wants to know.

April heaved a heavy sigh, leaning her forehead against his shoulder. "I don't hate you and I don't want you out of my life. You are my life. I love you. Maybe too much. You know that."