Burnout

Sticky Situation

"Come on, get out already!" I'd been picked up again and he started shaking me more. I tried to speak, but I kept feeling sick and I didn't want to puke all over the inside of my shell. I tried to see what might be going wrong, but the shaking didn't help. I kept trying to get out, but it still wouldn't budge. I realized that when he dropped me, the crack I heard pushed my shell closer together, creating a block. I tried as hard as I could, to the point where it was painful and digging into my skin, but I was still stuck. The shaking didn't stop until someone else snatched me from him, where I was finally able to rest. There was a lot of arguing, Raph was the most stubborn. "He wasn't getting out, I had to make him somehow! You said you weren't gonna interfere!"

"I wasn't going to until you started shaking our brother hard enough to give him brain damage! You cracked his shell, didn't you hear it?! Have you heard him say a single word since you dropped him?!" Leo was getting really defensive, which made sense, but I didn't think it was necessary to be that harsh.

"Have we heard him speak at all today?" Mikey spoke up, louder than the argument. That got everyone else thinking. "How do we know he's even responsive? What if he got knocked out somehow in that box or something?" I still couldn't bring myself to speak, it was tiring and I felt too sick to open my mouth. April was right there. 

"That's a good point, Michelangelo, we should approach this situation with caution. Now, how should we check to see if he's responsive?" Master Splinter was always the thoughtful one here, I wasn't ever really the smartest here, just the best with machines. 

"Maybe we should look inside the shell?" April suggested. 

"Dude, that's like looking under someone's clothes for turtles! ... I think." Mikey didn't make sense. "I dunno, maybe that's just me."

"Even if that were the case, doctors sometimes have to check under people's clothes to make sure they're ok, and I'm only going to look for his head." She was going to look for me herself? That was embarrassing, I knew I looked sick. I turned my head down, avoiding any possible eye contact with her. "Hey, Donnie, can you hear me?" I couldn't exactly speak, how was I supposed to respond? I tried just nodding my head, but apparently she couldn't see that. "He's not responding. Can someone bring me a flashlight?" That was going to be really bright, so I prepared for the worst. The light shone into the dark, almost blindingly white, burning my already sore eyes. 

"Shouldn't you have given a warning before you turned that on?" Leo tapped his foot. "I mean, he's been stuck in the dark for a while, that's a really bright flashlight."

"Oops, sorry, Donnie!" April was too considerate, she was apologizing for trying to help me. "Can you hear me?" I nodded, and that was all she needed. "Can you get out for me?" I shook my head no. "Why not?" I didn't know how to respond to that one, I couldn't speak without vomiting since I felt so sick, and my hands were stuck in my shell too, so I couldn't use sign language. 

"Oi, we're talking to you, stupid!" I could hear Raph going closer to me and I tried to pop out again instinctively, I wanted to run away from it. Thankfully, Leo stopped him.

"I think he's stuck, guys. I could see him try to get out when you came over, Raph. Can turtles get stuck in their shells?" April started petting my shell, she probably wasn't aware that turtles can feel their shells. It felt soothing, though, so I didn't mind. It was really nice to be held by her, she cradled me softly. 

"Yes, they indeed can, April. It only happens if their shells become damaged, though. You dropped him, Raphael, so you might've caused him to become stuck." Master Splinter didn't give him a single fragment of mercy. "You have to fix this now, Leonardo will oversee that it is done."

"Why me?! Leo's the one that cares so much!" It was good to know Raph didn't really care. 

"Because you caused this, you are responsible for fixing your mistake. You'll take care of him until he can come out again. Michelangelo, you will be responsible for feeding him proper food. No more rotten pizza. April, you'll be in charge of checking his health and doing research since you're the only one that knows how to properly use the internet other than Donatello. I will be in charge of comforting him if this situation becomes distressing for him." I wasn't about to let myself be a baby again, I could handle any problems I had.