To Love Yin and Yang

Chapter 16

I looked from him to Donnie but the turtle was completely still now. Confused I bowed and answered that of coarse we could talk. He turned back towards the dojo and motioned for me to follow. I followed, limping only slightly now. Once we were both in the dojo Splinter shut the thin door behind us and motioned for me to sit. I did as he asked and he then sat opposite me. He motioned for me to remain silent so I did so looking at him curiously. He grinned and winked at me.

I raised my eyebrows to convey my surprise and confusion to which his grin broadened into a smile. We sat in the dojo for a while before my stomach growled loudly, making us aware that we had yet to eat a proper dinner. Embarrassed I felt my ears redden and I began to fidget with my hands. Splinter chuckled softly and made a gesture for me to remain calm. Intrigued I cocked my head at him and tried to gauge where he was looking. From my best guess he wasn't looking at me, but rather a crack in the wall just behind me.

Confused I looked back to Splinter and was about to ask him what he was looking at, but he just shook his head almost imperceptibly. From the crack came a long, thin thread and I watched as it lifted what could be called its head to look around. When it noticed we were watching it, the thing receded far more quickly than it had come. Shocked I looked to Splinter who merely sighed and stood. He reached a hand down to me and easily helped me to my feet.

We left the dojo and the four brothers looked like they had all been caught with their respective hands in the cookie jar. I laughed at the predicament they had gotten themselves into and kept laughing as I made my way to the kitchen. Smiling I began to make pasta bolognese while listening to my new favorite song, "Made You Look" from Meghan Trainor. That slipped into a playlist with my favorite songs to dance to. When the sauce was finished and just needed to simmer I started cooking the pasta and digging out plates and what not for dinner.

Just as I turned away from the stove and cabinets I saw all four brothers and their father sitting at the dining room table watching me. Dumbfounded, the light-hearted ease I felt just moments before slipped away and apprehension began to take hold. "So... how long before dinner's served," drawled a very self-satisfied Raph. I huffed and began to hand out plates but skipped him. When he was the last one left I held the plate out of his reach and looked at him expectantly.

When he just stared back I went back to the kitchen to stir the sauce and check on the pasta while still holding Raph's plate. It wasn't ready to serve yet so I went back to Raph and announced very clearly, "just so we're clear: I am NOT some housewife or maid you can demand to have food ready for you at your leisure." I then gave him his plate and went back into the kitchen to check on the food. It wasn't because I was afraid of his reaction but because I was afraid I would ruin my sternness by breaking out in laughter along with his brothers and father. Donnie came in to the kitchen and carried out silverware and glasses followed by Leo who helped me with the pasta.

I did a last taste test of the sauce and deeming it ok to serve I limped out of kitchen knowing one of the brothers would bring it out to the table. Mikey came out holding the pot of sauce and it thumped heavily onto the table. He reached a hand towards me and smiling I handed him my plate. He served me pasta and sauce while I complained about portion size. I ended up eating what he had served, which surprised me, and we all enjoyed arguing over the days' lesson Splinter had been trying to convey. Laughter bounced off the walls and it was such a relaxed vibe that it felt as though this was something we had been doing for years.

The realization had me taking more of a backseat and watching the family interact. It wasn't long until I was asked to partake in some joke or argument and it occurred to me then that they already saw me as part of their everyday lives. That had me reeling so I excused myself to check my painting. I did technically check on it, but I then entered their dojo. Leo was still not allowing me to run so I figured I could do some yoga type excersizes. The pain that soon accompanied my muscles straining had my mind relaxing and I was able to zone out. With my eyes shut I could focus on my breathing and making sure I was using the proper muscles for each specific pose and having fluidity when changing.