#2012!leo x reader

Being the leader meant for Leo that he needed to be in control. It was his job to ensure that whenever the group was out on missions that everything went along smoothly. He needed to have a plan for every possible situation. Sure, his brothers may joke that he acts way too paranoid or is way too cautious but this way he could ensure that the chances of all four of them returning in one piece was way higher than if they just winged it. Besides he was happy to take on this burden himself. His brothers don’t need to worry about all those things and can instead goof around when the time allows it.

And the older they got the better he has gotten to fall right into his stoic leader persona. Not a single twitch in his facial expression when he dodged the sixth water balloon from Mikey that day.

His brothers have accepted him being the worrywart and stoic brother that he was. After all they grew up with him, they know him better than he might think. They very much realized what kind of burden he laid on himself. In private Leo did enjoy to goof of here and there as well, which especially Mikey took advantage of, though over time even that seemed to lessen.

Raph would sometimes joke that Leo’s face was made out of stone the way he always carried the same expression on his face.

Now for Leo, the chaos of his brothers was a known quantity. At this point he could predict fairly accurately what they were up to and what was going on. It wasn’t hard to steel his emotions and expression when you knew what to expect and after all, he has a ton of training in that regard.

So, when the group got into contact with a new human, Leo was certain he could uphold his typical persona fairly easy. But of course, the universe wouldn’t make it that easy for him, for the universe sent no one else but the agent of chaos right to them.

Y/N was actually quite a normal human. Did alright at school, had a few friends with whom they happily hung out with and loved to read comics in their free time. And yet if you asked the others, they would describe Y/N as someone who believed that life was a game and that they were currently winning it.

It was almost frustrating how easy Y/N managed to befriend everyone.

They were introduced to the group after the turtles saved them and April from some attackers. April has been already good friends with them. The two just randomly met and apparently hit it off immediately. It didn’t take long for Casey to meet them as well and from that on the mention of Y/N became an almost daily occurrence.

April or Casey would stare at their phones, sometimes giggle or roll their eyes only to explain to the turtles that it was “Just Y/N being Y/N”. Of course, the turtles got curious and asked them about this mysterious Y/N who suddenly caught Casey’s and April’s attention so much.

Poor Donnie saw April even less because she met up with Y/N as often as she could. Something about being happy that she had a normal friend as well.

That of course changed when the brothers saved April and Y/N from a Krang attack. April tried to send Y/N away, tell them to flee and that she got it covered but Y/N was stubborn. They tried kicking one of their attackers away only to painfully realize that they were more robust than anticipated.

The turtles dealt with the bots quite easily with the help of April as Y/N just stared mouth agape. As soon as the last one fell to the ground Donnie helped April up on the roof while Mikey grabbed the new human to help them up as well.

There April calmed them down and explained them that friendly turtle mutants exist and that they were good friends of hers. Saying something on the lines of “Remember the friend group I always hang out with and talk about? That’s them.” Which earned herself a bit of a stern stare from Leo.

“Well, what am I supposed to say when I have to randomly run off when I hang out with them. It’s easier to just say that a friend needs my help. Which is usually true, I just omitted some things.”

He couldn’t argue with that. Leo knew that April was in a bit of an annoying position, but she has managed to handle her two different lives as a normal student and as a kunoichi in training surprisingly well, so he felt it was fair to let this go. Besides the cat was definitely out of the bag at this point.

Which reminded him.

Y/N was standing next to April, once they realized that the turtles were friendly and good friends of their friend they definitely relaxed. They even sported a nice and friendly smile as he and his brothers introduced themselves. It spoke volumes about them how they managed to stay calm and even friendly in the night where they suddenly found out that robots with aliens in their bellies existed but also ninja mutant turtles who fought them on the regular.

Mikey was bouncing around, clearly happy since this situation probably meant that they get to have a new human friend. Even Donnie and Raph eyed them curiously.

Leo on the other hand had his typical neutral but stern expression on. He would be more worried about the implications of this situation, but April seemed to trust them with the knowledge of him and his family. But still, he had to ensure his family’s safety.

Taking a few steps closer so he stood right in front of the new human he took a moment to stare blankly into their eyes. Maybe it was a tactic to intimidate them a little, maybe he just wanted to see how they would react. Either way Y/N wasn’t afraid to stare him down right back. The slight grin on their lips didn’t go unnoticed. It made Leo feel like as if they knew exactly what he was doing. As if they could see right through him. He didn’t like that.

“Y/N.” He tried out their name. Even though their eyes were still burning right through him it felt like there was a new glint in their eyes.

“You do not tell anyone about us, if we find out you talked about us to others… I’ll make sure you will regret it.” Okay, sure some might say this was way too aggressive, but this was about the safety of his family. Seeing how his said family didn’t step in, they must have realized his intentions as well.

As a response Y/N laid their hand over their heart “I solemnly swear I will not mention you guys to anyone. I mean who will believe me anyway? Besides you guys saved me, and April seems to like you. Who am I to put my handsome knight in shining shell in more danger.”

That was a… response. It made him stop in his tracks. If he wasn’t already tense this would definitely make him tense.

April couldn’t help herself as she let out a chuckle “You are impossible.” Clearly used to their antics.

Leo just narrowed his eyes “This is serious.”

“And I’m being serious as well! Everything I said I meant wholeheartedly.” Their smile wide accompanied by a wink, clearly referring mostly to the little flirty quip at the end.

Before Leo could retort April just elbowed their side to which Y/N finally relented and sighed.

“I mean it. I won’t tell anyone anything. I don’t want to put you into more danger and from the little bit what April has told me over time I can tell that she trusts you a lot.” Somehow Leo thought it was impossible for them to sound serious but here they were.

Suddenly Leo felt some weight on his shell and Mikey’s face popped up next to him as he was still busy staring down the new human.

“Does that mean they will be a new friend that we can hang out with?”

“I’m not sure. They would be in way more danger if they hung out with us. It would be better if they just continued on and ignored our existence.” Leo replied.

But apparently Y/N had other ideas because they shook their head “Oh no, Blue. You can’t get rid of me that easily now. Any friends of April are my friends.”

Mikey beamed at that, leaning more over his brother as he continued climbing up him. Leo had to move a few steps to the side to keep his balance as Mikey tried to get closer to Y/N yet he still looked at Leo from the side “See! They say we are already friends, Leo!”

“If it helps, Leo, I’ll vouch for them. I honestly believe one of the reasons I wasn’t suspended from school yet for missing classes is because Y/N here managed to come up with excuses for me even without knowing what was going on. I trust them.”

“Only if Sensei is okay with it.” He finally relented.

Y/N and Mikey cheered at that while April happily laid her arm around them. April might have been happy with having a normal friend, but she accepted a long time ago already that her life will never be normal.

Finally, Mikey jumped off his eldest brother to begin talking Y/N’s ears off.

The group led their new friend to the sewers where Y/N met Splinter. Y/N must have noticed how the others held immense respect towards the tall rat mutant since they tried to act as polite as possible. They happily told him who they were and earnestly told him that they will keep their existence a secret. And after April once again vouched for them Splinter happily agreed to let them be apart of the little friend group of his sons.

When he retreated into his quarters Leo’s brothers, mostly Mikey, immediately jumped to get to know the human better. As they begun pulling them along to show off their home, Y/N took a look back towards the leader in blue.

“Seems like we will get to know each other better, Blue.” Another wink and they turned back around to follow Mikey around.

And as Leo felt a tingle in his stomach at their words and behavior, he knew that they would be more trouble than they are worth it.

And trouble they were. Specifically, for him.

The brothers sat around the kitchen table, opening their pizza cartons to finally grab a nice bite to eat after a long training session. Honestly it went better than usual. Even Mikey managed to somewhat focus. Well for a few minutes longer than usual.

It was then that Y/N just waltzed into their lair as if they owned it. They were about to fling themself on the couch but noticed the brothers in the kitchen.

“What’s up, dude! Good timing!” Mikey said, his mouth full with pizza.

Y/N chuckled as they walked into the kitchen, their eyes looking over the pizza boxes “Clearly! Can I get a piece? Pretty please?”

But Mikey put his arm protectively around his box, lightly pushing it away from Y/N a serious frown on his face “Nuh-uh! I worked for this! Should have grabbed some food before coming over.”

Their eyes widened, their mouth playfully turned downwards “Mikey! My pretty best friend! You would starve me?”

“Yep.”

Clearly Y/N couldn’t let this be so their pleading eyes landed on Raph.

“No chance.”

Then on to Donnie.

“Oh no. This is mine. You came in here unannounced that’s what you get.”

And when Y/N’s eyes landed on Leo, he made sure to ignore them. He just kept on eating. It didn’t stop him from feeling warm under their gaze. And while he made a point to not look at them and concentrate on his food, he did notice Y/N stepping closer. From the corner of his eyes, he could see them pout.

As they stood next to him, they leaned closer to him, one hand casually on his shoulder “Come on, Leo. Please?”

“You heard Donnie.” Was all he said.

Now what Leo forgot was that Y/N didn’t know what shame was and honestly, they were way too brave for their own good.

Just as Leo grabbed another pizza piece their own hand landed on his wrist as he was halfway back in the air. Now he couldn’t help but look at Y/N, who had a very smug smile on their face. Not wanting to give them the satisfaction of a reaction, he made sure to steel his expression into his professional neutral one.

As the two stood in this standstill the other three at the table couldn’t help but stare.

Both kept staring at each other. Leo stoically and Y/N smugly.

Once again to Leo it felt like Y/N could see right through him. Through the façade he put on to look stronger more able than he sometimes felt. Though right now he needed it to hide how his mouth suddenly felt dry, how there was an unmistakable heat climbing up his neck as Y/N stood so close to him. He knew they did it on purpose to stand close and press their side against his.

It’s just how they were, he tried to explain to himself. They searched for body contact whenever they could. Grabbing Mikey to dance to the music they randomly put on. Climbing onto Raph’s back as a way to distract him when they played video games. Throwing their arm around Donnie’s shoulders to pull him away from his projects.

He could feel the pull of their fingers against his wrist as they slowly moved his pizza towards them. Taking a huge bite out of it with a grin.

“Thank you, Blue. You’re my favorite for a reason.”

When they suddenly let go of his wrist, he couldn’t help but miss the warmth of their hand. Even while they forcefully had moved his hand so they could take a bite out of his pizza, it was still careful.

“Is… Is Leo blushing? Did Y/N manage to break our fearless leader?” Raph asked. He genuinely sounded impressed.

Leo moved his head away to the side, a frown on his face. He wasn’t blushing! He couldn’t be!

“Wow. Y/N is more powerful than I thought.” Donnie spoke.

Taking in a deep breath Leo tried to calm his heart down, this was horrible. Normally he could hide his emotions well but somehow Y/N really managed to get under his skin.

Speaking of Y/N they placed their hands on his arm, slightly squeezing it “Hey, Leo, come on. Look at me.” Their voice was soft, quiet even as they pleaded to him but even without looking at them Leo could tell that they were still smiling. They were always smiling.

At this point he felt like he had better control of his body, so he turned around, trying to look unamused. Expecting to see Y/N with a Cheshire smile on their face but he instead it was a soft one. There was an emotion hidden there that he couldn’t decipher. Their eyes clearly running over his face, probably trying to find a hint of said blush. Which he of course didn’t have!

“Aw, I wanted to see your blushing face! I bet it looks cute.”

Leo sighed defeated, once again turning away “Just grab a slice already. You won.” The heat exploded on his cheeks at their last comment. He knew it didn’t work like that, but he hoped that his mask would hide his blush.

“I know I just said this but there is a reason you are my favorite. You don’t let me starve.” They made sure to narrow their eyes and look at the other turtles accusingly.

The others didn’t even seem to properly register what Y/N was doing. They were honestly too baffled that this just happened. Getting under the leader’s skin like that so easily was not easy. Actually, they haven’t seen anything like that yet. Not from someone outside the family at least. As his brothers they knew how to push his buttons, but this was new.

Oh, they will be sure to remind him of this until the end of days.

As it turned out though, they didn’t have to do a lot since Y/N had it covered themself.

After the pizza incident they were mostly found around Leo. Throwing themself on his back whining something about wanting to be carried by him. Stealing his food whenever they could. Putting their legs across his lab whenever the group had movie night. And the hugs, there were so many hugs.

And whenever Leo broke out into another blush Y/N would cheer happily and give him compliments about how it apparently suited him.

It didn’t take long for Leo that he had to admit that he developed a bit of a crush on Y/N.

How could he deny that fact for long when there was literally only one thing that managed to break through his leader persona, and he couldn’t help but enjoy it a little bit. At first it was annoying. He needed to be the serious one, he needed to have the control but somehow Y/N just managed to break through that wall so easily again and again.

The problem with admitting that he did indeed have a crush was that he started having hope. Hope was dangerous, especially with Y/N.

Every time they searched for body contact with him, made compliments, flirty quips when they watched him train, he couldn’t help but for the moment think this was something they only did to him. That this meant something more than just to rile him up and see him flustered as his brothers giggled.

But whenever Y/N pulled Mikey along to dance again, interlacing their fingers with his, whenever they asked for a one-on-one training session from Raph with a wink, whenever they told Donnie that they enjoyed listening to his ramblings because they loved his voice, it felt like someone threw ice water onto his head.

A wake-up call from his own rose-tinted dream that he tried to hold on to.

He knew he made it worse for himself as he couldn’t help but enjoy the attention from Y/N and looked for it whenever they came to visit again. At this point he only needed to take one look at them for his heartbeat to pick up. A smile cracking through his façade when his eyes met theirs. His breath hitching when they notice how he looks at them and grace him with that soft smile that he saw so rarely.

And then they turn around and throw a compliment towards one of his brothers which always brought him back down to reality. Reality hurt.

Reality was that Y/N just liked to flirt with everybody. It was just who they were. It was harmless. It meant nothing.

It meant nothing to them. It shouldn’t mean anything to Leo. His mind knew what was going on, but his heart didn’t.

There was no chance that Y/N liked him back anyhow. They were funny, loved to goof off and did everything to liven the place up. He was just the boring leader who looked serious twenty-four-seven and forced everyone else to take everything serious. No, there was no chance that they could feel the same in any way. It was just impossible.

Honestly this was maddening. He tried to work through his frustration with training and meditation, but Y/N invaded his mind even then. Leo had to admit, he was thoroughly screwed.

Leo knew he had to do something about it but what, he didn’t know.

The day came sooner than he anticipated.

He just finished another training session alone when Y/N came into the dojo. Even as brash as they were they knew that the dojo was a bit of a special place. Taking cautious steps towards Leo, searching his eyes for permission.

Leo chuckled “What’s up?” He made a choice to ignore how his heart was thrumming behind his plastron as he saw how Y/N now walked happier over to him. Their hands behind their back as they smiled their soft smile.

Whatever the reason was as to why they came over, he wanted to believe that it was more than boredom that made them choose to look for him specifically. Damn, there he goes again, making life more difficult for himself.

Y/N shrugged but the glint in their eyes told him they had a specific agenda “Oh, I don’t know. Heard that you were training and thought I could maybe watch but apparently you are done already. Bad timing on my part.”

“You know how often you watch us train you might as well join us.”

“Oh, what? Then I have to save my sorry butt myself! Why save myself if I could just wait for my blue knight in shining shell come and sweep me off my feet.” They sighed dramatically, laying the back of their hand on their forehead.

Leo narrowed his eyes at that. Of course, he would come and save them whenever they are in trouble, but he would do this for all his friends. Y/N wasn’t special at all, yep.

Y/N giggled stepping closer, playfully poking him once at the top of his plastron “Don’t look like that, Blue. If I remember correctly when we met it was you who carried me while you all sailed along the roofs to bring me to your lair. What can I say, I got addicted. I mean who wouldn’t be when a guy just casually picks you up and safely carries you like it was nothing.”

“Can you just… stop.” His voice was quiet, yet it made Y/N stop blabbering while he was surprised himself. It just left his mouth, betraying what went through his mind. He needed this to stop, this false hope was painful.

“Not liking compliments today?” Y/N clearly tried to alleviate the awkward air that suddenly surrounded the two. Their eyes looked over him quizzically.

Leo gulped, noticing how his mouth was suddenly dry, something that happened way too often around them “I-“ It was his chance to finally set things right and get rid of this knot in the pit of his stomach.

Y/N cocked their head to the side “I know you are the serious one, but I really don’t like this frown on your face. I prefer a smile on it. Tell me what is going through your mind, Leo.” They rarely called him that, opting to calling him Blue most of the time.

Their hands tentatively traveled to his hand, squeezing it. It was their way to encourage him. After all they were very much the touchy type.

He sighed, trying to breath out the nervousness that encompassed him “I just can’t keep dealing with this. I don’t think you notice the way you are playing with my heart and it’s just-“

This might be the first time Leo saw Y/N almost mirror his serious expression “You need to talk to me otherwise I can’t help you.”

They were right.

This time Leo didn’t mind that he could tell that he was blushing, he needed this to stop. He couldn’t concentrate anymore but he needed to.

“Your compliments… your flirting is what the problem is. I care for you. A lot. And every time you throw these compliments at my head my heart skips a beat! At first, I was just embarrassed but the way- how easily you can just get to me… I fell for you, Y/N and every time you flirt with me only to turn around to do the same with others.” He sighs again “It hurts. I need you to stop playing with my heart like this. I can’t concentrate anymore. Just- Just stop this with me, please. I know this doesn’t mean anything to you but to me you give me hope only to tear it into pieces the next moment. I tried ignoring it, but I can’t anymore.”

Then there was quiet.

Y/N just kept staring into his eyes as he tried to stand his ground.

Leo just told them exactly how he felt but it was needed. He couldn’t do this any longer.

His face was ablaze, and he could tell that he began to sweat due to his nerves. Leo tried to untangle his hand with that of Y/N’s but they just squeezed his hand again, laying their other hand on top of his. The warmth was welcoming but at the same time it felt like it was burning him. He wanted to retreat, just get out of this situation, and forget this has happened but Y/N held him firmly in this place.

But what really made him stop trying to get out of their grasp were their eyes. The soft smile, a crinkle around their eyes as their smile seemingly reached their beautiful eyes. Though what surprised him was the unmistakable blush that was on their cheeks. It positively sucked all the air out of his lungs.

He could cry, he wanted all of this to stop but somehow it just got worse.

“Yeah, you are right. Only partially though. I am a flirt. It’s how I show I care for people, it’s just my go to reaction but the problem with that is when I really mean it… I guess it comes over as my usual self.” They chuckled nervously.

“Y/N?” his voice was wavering.

“It means that when I flirted with you, I actually meant it for once. Maybe I thought you could tell that I was flirting with you more than the others because I care for you. I think, the moment I met you I began having a crush on you. I never wanted you to feel this pain. The first time I saw your blushing face I knew that I had it bad for you.”

To say the least, this was not what he expected.

Leo expected that they might try to talk their way out of this. Say something that he should loosen up but this? Never. Maybe only in his dreams but that was that. Dreams.

“You mean that?” He flinched at the crack of his voice, suddenly feeling more like a child than a ninja that beat up all kinds of foes on the daily.

Y/N let go of his hand, sad at the sudden loss of contact once again. But their hands landed on his shoulders, pulling him closer against them in a hug. It wasn’t the first hug but this time it felt more genuine, more loving, more intimate.

They slowly moved a step back to snake their hands over to grasp his face softly between their soft hands. Leo involuntarily leaned more into their touch.

Seeing this as a good sign, Y/N smile and moved up to meet his lips in a chaste kiss. Their lips soft as they hesitantly brushed against his. It felt like he got electrocuted. Not believing what was happening. His heart felt like it exploded in his chest. The butterflies in his stomach seemed to have multiplied.

“Does this answer your question?” They looked confident but the waver in their voice betrayed their own nerves.

“I- I think so…”

“Okay, then if you can tell what I’m feeling for you now let me just say this. I’m sorry for doing this to you. I never meant to play with your emotions like that. I realize now how this all must have looked towards you and I’m really, really sorry.”

This time it was Leo who softly leaned over to catch Y/N off guard with a kiss. Where this sudden confidence came from, he didn’t know. Maybe it was all the frustration that has build up over the months.

“I think I can forgive you.” He chuckled. Immense relief rushing over him. “But…”

“But?”

“Maybe keep your attention from now on me only?”

This made Y/N laugh, it was a beautiful laugh that seemed to wash away any of the rest of the thick air that was still surrounding them “Oh, happily! How can I not! I have my handsome prince charming right here.”