O-K-A-Y

At the soft chime of his T-Phone, Donatello tore his gaze away from the (rather gory) monster movie Mikey had chosen for Friday Movie Night and eagerly read what his red-headed 'friend' had messaged him.

i'll be there in a few. see u soon.

April's simple text sent countless waves of happiness throughout Donnie, making his fingers tingle and his heart kick against his chest, and he was so caught up in clicking his fingers over the cellphone keyboard that he hadn't noticed Michelangelo curiously leaning over his shoulder.

Okay. Be careful. :)

"Dude," Mikey stated near an unsuspecting Donnie's ear, making the scientist jump in surprise. "Why'd you type out the word 'ok'?"

Frowning at the scare his baby brother had given him, Donatello simply yet somewhat irritably replied, "Because that's how it's spelled."

"Nu uh," Mikey promptly disagreed, plopping onto the couch next to the scientist and readying himself for the incoming debate. "It'd be, like, ten times easier if you just said 'o-k' instead of being all smart-like and wasting time."

"Well unlike some people, I'm not trying to rush through my life."

"I'm not rushing through my life either! I'm simply trying to give you some Life Shortcuts."

Donnie smirked at his brother's excuse. "Life Shortcuts?"

"Yeah, like… why go down the stairs one boring step at a time when you can just jump over the railing?"

"Because you'll roll an ankle!" Donatello exclaimed with a look of horror etched on his face. "Mikey, please tell me you haven't been doing that!"

Michelangelo simply shrugged before greedily reaching across his purple clad brother, snatching a handful of buttery popcorn from a large bowl. Then, as he brought his snack to his mouth, he gave Don a wide grin and said, "I'm not hurt yet, am I?"

Kneading the skin on his beak with two pinched fingers, Donnie closed his eyes and shook his head in disbelief. "This is exactly why Raph has so many issues with you."

"Yeah well I have an 'issue' with people who waste their precious time typing out words that don't need to be typed out!" Mikey playfully quipped as he munched noisily on the movie treat. Then, suddenly turning serious after a few moments of deep thought, he faced Donatello and staring deeply into the soft brown eyes, gently added, "You only live once, D."

"When did this turn into a therapy session?" Don asked with a roll of his eyes. "I just texted 'okay' to April; it's not the end of the world."

"The end of your world is gonna come pretty fast since you used up so much of your time typing out 'ok'."

"Mikey, please! I just want to watch this movie in peace and, most importantly, quiet!"

Donatello audibly sighed in relief as Mikey playfully stuck out his tongue and turned his limited attention back to the magic box in front of them. Wincing as a gruesome five-legged and four-headed creature was slaughtered by one of the movie's cocky heroes, Donnie relaxed into the sofa cushioned and tried his hardest to enjoy the freetime he was having with his baby brother.

It's rare that the two youngest ever got some time alone; while Leo was meditating, Raphael was working out, and Mikey was playing video games, Donnie was often hidden away in his lab working on his newest experiment. When the family did come together, it was generally to go on their nightly patrols to make sure New York's dirtbags got the beating they deserved. Of course, no one is complaining; an adrenaline-pumped outing underneath the stars was always welcomed into the mutant family. But it was times like these that made Donatello's days brighter, and he currently wouldn't want it any other way.

Then he heard his T-Phone's chime.

Reflexively, the intelligent turtle picked up his phone and opened the new message from April.

hey, u think the guys want some pizza gyoza from murakami's?

Smiling tenderly at April's thoughtfulness, Donnie swiftly swept his calloused fingers over the keyboard.

yeah that would be awesome. thanks April.

He noticed the hot breath on the back of his neck too late.

"Why'd you spell out 'yeah' when you could've just put 'y-a'?"

"Mikey!"

"You're gonna thank me one day, D. Just wait until you're on your death bed; then we'll see what you have to say."

A/N

Based on an argument I had with a friend whilst writing the next chapter of Eye of the Storm.