Work Text:
Leo sighed over the now cold cup of tea in his hands. He had been sitting at the kitchen table since soon after he'd woken, which had been hours ago now. Sleep was elusive lately; his room was too quiet.
He had grown used to the sounds of the jungle. New York never stopped, but deep below the surface, he heard nothing. And although their lair creaked and groaned around him, it was only the sounds of his brothers nearby that ever let him settle properly in his own body.
So he waited. Waited for them to wake up, to bustle noisily into the kitchen in search of breakfast and coffee. Waited for them to bring his sanity back to him.
Raph appeared first. He raised a brow as he spotted Leo in his now usual spot at the table.
"Ya know, yer allowed ta sleep sometimes," Raph told him as he entered the kitchen, heading straight to the fridge.
"I sleep," Leo said, pushing his cold, bitter tea away as he sat back in his chair.
Raph snorted, unbelieving. He pulled the pizza box from the day before out and dumped it on the counter, flipping it open. He ripped off a slice, taking a large bite, before dropping it back into the box as he went about setting the coffee to brew.
Leo enjoyed watching him. It made him feel alive, present, calm. It washed away the apathy.
It was only with his brothers that Leo felt real. They gave him purpose; he would do anything for them. He wanted to give them the world, to be whatever they needed. He knew his ability to give them perfection wasn't real, but the illusion of it whenever they leaned on him was a vice he couldn't surrender.
"Want another?" Raph questioned suddenly.
Leo blinked at him.
"The tea," Raph clarified. "Looks like that one's been cold a while."
"I'm good," Leo assured him.
"Whatever," Raph said with a shrug, bringing the whole pizza box over to the table as he came to sit across from Leo.
As the morning quiet settled over them, Leo helped himself to some pizza too. He nibbled at it slowly. And it wasn't long before Mikey joined them.
"Yo, save me some," he said, as he bounced over and clambered straight over Raph, to get to the chair on the other side of him, squatting on his own seat as he grabbed a slice and ate enthusiastically. "I had the weirdest dream," he told them past his mouthful.
"Bro, seriously, learn ta fucking swallow," Raph said with a grimace. "Gross."
Mikey swallowed before grinning widely. "That's what they said!"
Raph groaned, even as Leo laughed.
"What's so funny?" Donnie asked as he came wandering in half asleep.
"Absolutely nothing," Raph said firmly. "Definitely not Mikey."
"Rude!" Mikey protested. "I'm hilarious."
"Of course you are," Donnie said as he headed straight for the coffee pot, pulling down his usual mug with barely a glance.
Leo watched him as Mikey and Raph bickered lightly, enjoying the practiced movements of Donnie's morning routine.
He wanted to jump up from his seat and wrap him in a hug, thank him for just being himself. He wanted to pull them all close and never let them go. He wanted to make them all promise never let them be apart again. He wanted to keep this happiness forever.
Because more than anything, Leo never wanted to be lost to his apathy ever again.