Work Text:
Leo tosses and turns in bed, grappling the sheets and earning a kick from Donnie. He whines a weak protest and can almost feel how hard Donnie rolls his eyes. Leo huffs, pulling their shared blanket to his chin and staring at Donnie's back. Donnie's bare, de-battle-shelled back (and are those bruises on his shoulders?).
Without thinking, Leo reaches out to trace the faint circular patterns on Donnie's shell, frowning when he feels Donnie tense beneath his hand. Donnie shuffles away with tight shoulders, turning his head to glower back at Leo.
"Go to sleep, insomniac," he states bluntly, his maskless face and half-lidded eyes highlighting his eye bags. How ironic , Leo thinks. He forces himself to grin.
"You're one to talk, Don. Just look at those eye bags." Leo reaches out to poke Donnie's cheek, and Donnie shies away from the touch with a grimace. When Donnie turns back around with a quiet ' scoff ,’ Leo's smile drops swiftly and comes back just as fast when Donnie begins speaking once more. "Y'know... You can sleep on my shell."
There's a pause.
"Like how you used to when we were younger." Donnie clarifies, his voice shaky. Leo frowns, gooey pink bodies and sharp-toothed grins flashing behind his eyelids with each slow, exhausted blink. His chest tightens, but he physically shakes the thoughts away, plastering a tight smile. "Aww, Don, you do love me!"
Donnie groans immediately. "I regret ever saying anything."
Leo chuckles dryly before his voice drops to something more serious. "Are you sure you're okay with me sleeping on your shell after..." Leo swallows the knot in his throat. "You know."
"I know." Donnie hums and flips over to face Leo. "I am perfectly fine with you sleeping on my shell. No worries, dearest brother of mine," He confirms quietly, searching Leo's face for discomfort.
Leo smiles genuinely, scooting a little closer to Donnie. "I also know how much you've been thinking about it. So, I am giving you the perfect opportunity to do so right now." Donnie adds on, shuffling back onto his other side so that his shell is facing Leo.
Something warm bubbles up in Leon's chest, and he happily scuffles closer, nestling his head right into the curve of Donnie's soft shell. Immediately, any tension that had burdened his body dissipated, and he couldn't bite back the happy chirp that left him at the feeling.
Donnie laughs, and his shoulders relax as they fall into a more comfortable position. Leo is practically draped over Donnie's back while Donnie curls into a ball beneath the tussled blanket. "Hey, Don?" Leo murmurs into the dip of Donnie’s shell. Donnie hums with a yawn, and so Leo continues.
"I love you."
Donnie stiffens for half a second before sighing softly, a smile appearing. "I love you too, Nardo."