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((Author's Note: A first-person POV of the new girl, Goldilocks, since I felt it would help if you, the readers, could take a peak into her lil head. Enjoy!))

It's been a very interesting morning, I'll admit. First, there was the news that this group called "The Foot" cleaned out three drug lords overnight--didn't kill 'em, just roughed them up and dumped 'em for the police to snag, along with all the evidence they needed. The strangest thing, though, was that these druggies claim that the Foot had robbed them of most of their cash. Weird...I don't think I'll ever get the way the underworld works sometimes.

Doesn't mean I really wanna get involved in that kind of stuff in the first place. I know better than to go pokin' my nose around that stuff--unless I hafta...which I hope won't happen anytime soon.

Aww, the kids are begging Mikey--I mean, "Cowabunga Carl"--to make more balloon animals. How cuuuute! I'm surprised they got so much energy left after I showed them some neat skateboarding tricks--

That's right... Note to self: Thank Mikey for lending me his deck. I only hope that his bro can fix mine before I hafta head home tonight.

Mikey...he's so unusual. I suppose part of it's because he's...well, a walkin' talkin' turtle! I mean, yeah, I've heard of such creatures--those triceratop guys were REALLY freaky when they had invaded a couple of years back--but Mikey...he's just one of those mutants people have been talkin' 'bout lately. Nice one, too...and cute. Definitely cute. I bet he's cuter without that orange mask! Tee-hee...

But...it's his eyes that's the most interesting. They're so...open. Undefended. Trusting. They're so full of life and fun. They truly fit the ol' sayin': "The eyes are the windows to one's soul."

People have no idea how true it is--at least for me. To look into someone's eyes is to truly see them, not the people they claim to be. Most people can't see that.

I can.

I've always seen people beyond the outside--at least, if I'm able to look 'em straight in the eye. That's why I hated most of the other rich girls at my school; they were so out of touch with the real world and so, so...shallow. They had never lost a friend to the streets, like I've lost so many of my ol' skating gang to the hell of the ghettos. They never had to work their asses off for their dreams, like I had to win my gold medals in the X Games. They never had to help a dad who's cursed.

Like my dad is...was, I mean...

Daddy...I still miss you. I know you're free; you'd be alive if the curse of immortality was still upon you. I know that you and your brothers and sister are finally free to move on, to be at peace... But I miss you all the same. It's not the same without you to cheer me on, encouraging me to soar faster and higher. I started competing just for you, Daddy. You were the wind beneath my eagle wings. I could always go to you when I was hurt or sad. I could always trust you with my deepest secrets, my worst crushes. You hardly spanked me when I was growing up; just the look you gave me was just enough.

And I knew that you were sad, too, Daddy. I saw it in your eyes, beyond all the love and pride you had for me and Nat. I saw the loneliness of a man who had loved and lost countless times over the centuries. I saw a man who yearned for the peace of Heaven, but was forced to walk this mortal plane year after year. How many wives have you had before you met Mom? How many kids did you had before Nat and I came along? I always wanted to ask you that. I always wanted to hear about those previous moms...about all those brothers and sisters that I never knew, but wanted to know and love as much as you did.

But I can't ask that now...

Ah, they need more pizza. Good Lord, these kids are bottomless stomachs! I don't think I was that bad growing up...

"I'll go get it," I find myself telling Mikey.

"Thanks, Goldi-babe!"

"Goldi-babe"... We've hardly known each other for a couple of hours, and he's already got a nickname for me. Well, it's a decent one. Thank God I never told him my birth name. Ugh! I still can't believe that Mom named me Gilda! That's just so...annoying and so, so, soooo lame! I hope Mikey don't find out until waaaaay down the line.

Well, if we keep in contact. I cross my fingers as I'm heading towards the van to get the remaining boxes of pizza. I like Mikey. He's so easy-going, and willing to put a smile on your face. Plus, he totally digs me for the pro skater that I really am--which is very nice, coming from a fellow skater. Plus, he's so sweet, lending me his skateboard when I offered to help entertain his customers while he took a break for a bite and a toilet run. I wonder if his brother is also a turtle. Maybe... 'course, I gotta wonder what their dad looks like, too. He must at least have Japanese blood to have the last name of 'Hamato'; I mean, it sounds Japanese to me...

Mikey...

I've seen the souls of many people over the years: poor folk with hearts of gold, and rich folk with black, uncaring hearts. I've met the chiefs of the Fire Department and the NYPD, and both men have the hearts of everyday heroes--heroes that any kid could look up to and say, "When I grow up, I wanna be just like him!" I've also come face to face with THE Kingpin himself. Of course, he didn't call him that at Daddy's business party...but one look into those hard eyes, and I KNEW that it was him. Oh, MAN, was that freaky! I had to excuse myself to go calm down in the bathroom! I even met the head of CSI at one point, when an employee at the company had killed another out of jealosy last year. Mac's cool, in a "hard-bitten cop" kind of way. He's the kind of guy does his work and let the evidence tell the story. I feel safe, knowing that he can--and has--put the real criminals in jail.

But Mikey...he's more than just a hero. When I saw his eyes, I instantly saw his heart...but it was no heart of an everyday hero, or just a fun-loving skater like me. It's the heart of a warrior. The heart of one who have faced impossible odds, and won. He's a guy who had been through so much, and yet still looks forward to the future with bright eyes and an eager, open heart.

That's why I was so in awe when I first saw him. I wasn't seeing a mutant turtle. I was seeing him. I was seeing Michelangelo Hamato.

I've finally seen the heart of a superhero...and I want to see more of him. I don't care if Natalie don't like him. Nat's totally blind when it comes to guys anyway. Besides, I'll be 18 in three weeks. By that time, I hope that I'll still be in contact with Mikey.

I want to be part of his world...even if it's dangerous. I know it will be; he is a warrior, and warriors tend to get into trouble even if they don't go lookin' for it. But I wanna be there for him. I wanna be there with him. No matter what...

...am I being naive? Wanting to spend so much time with a guy that I just met? People keep tellin' me that I'm naive lately, that I don't know how the real world works. Then again, most of them are the stuck-up pricks that I'm tired of living with. I wanna live the style of the street skater. I want my life to be more Main Street than Beverly Hills. I want to explore the world while I'm still young. I want to soar above the clouds...maybe even touch the stars.

Maybe...maybe I could do that with Mikey...

I dunno what I'm gettin' myself into, but as they say: No guts, no glory!

Now, how am I gonna open the door with six pizza boxes in my arms?