Easy
By Ella Mai
Mikey promised himself he was done with love. Things with Renet didn't work out. Shini didn't even give him the time of day. He figured that no one would ever want to be with a mutant turtle. All Mikey wanted to do was clear his mind; to have one day without the drama of villains and heartbreak.
Mikey closed the door to his room with a sigh. He made his way through the lair and to the exit. Donnie took notice of the look on his baby brother's face. He knew the look of heartbreak.
"Hey, Mikey?" Donnie began. "Love is easy. Don't you make it hard. You'll know the right person when you meet them."
"What if she's not out there Donnie?" Mikey throws his arms in the air. He shakes his head and turns back around, grabbing his skateboard. "I'm heading out. I'll be back later."
Donnie called out to his younger brother, but received no response.
~~~~~
Luna was in the skatepark. It was late, but she was stressing about her latest assignment in her art class. She was hoping to haw started drawing by now, but she couldn't choose what she wanted to draw. Luna decided to come to the skatepark to clear her mind and hopefully find something that she could draw for her project.
Luna skidded to a stop on her skateboard. "Maybe I could paint Mena Massoud as Aladdin...or do something for Toy Story since it just came out." She mumbles to herself as she plopped down next to a manhole.
"I think you should do Mena and Will." A random voice spoke up.
Luna scrambled up from her seated position and held her beloved skateboard like a bat. "Who's there? Show yourself."
The manhole clattered a bit. "I don't know. You might hit me with your skateboard. And trust me, I know what that feels like."
Luna rolled her eyes. "Look, unless you're Pennywise or something, I'm not going to hit you with it. I love my skateboard too much."
"Well that's a relief." The voice said. "I'm definitely trying to skate my problems away tonight."
The manhole slid to the side as two green three-fingered hands sprouted from the empty space. A mutant turtle sprang from the dark area and smiled at Luna.
"I'm Mikey." He held out a hand and flashed a toothy smile. "Nice board by the way."
Luna grinned back at the orange masked mutant even though she was still a little shocked at his appearance. "Well, Mikey, I'm Luna...and thanks."
She ruffled her blue and purple hair and looked expectantly at Mikey. He stared back in confusion.
"What?" Mikey inquired.
"You said you wanted to skate you problems away. Let's see those moves." She motioned for him to start.
He laughed. "How about this, if I beat you in a skating competition, I chose what you draw. If you win..."
She quickly picked up where he left off. "You have to teach me a few moves with your 'chucks you got there."
Mikey smiled. "Deal." Once they shook hands, he continued. "First to skate to that light pole and back wins."
"I think it should be the most stylistic skater should win." Luna crosses her arms.
"Fine, the most impressive and/or first to make it back here will win, both of which will be me." Mikey stretches and balances himself on his skateboard.
Luna does the same, a small smirk on her face. She nods to Mikey, signaling to him that she's ready.
"Alright, on three." Mikey starts the countdown. "Three, two- hey, you cheated!" He calls after the green eyed girl who decided to give herself a head start.
"You never said it had to be a fair race!" She yelled back as Mikey took off after her.
~~~~~
It has been a week since the race, and Mikey was currently at Luna's house, showing her another trick with his nunchucks and discussing what Luna should draw for her project. If you're wondering who won the race, the two decided to call it a tie since Luna crosses the finish line first and Mikey had the best moves.
"I've been thinking, Luna." He said as he steadied her hand.
"We all be thinking for real." She grinned.
Mikey rolled his eyes. "We do all think. Listen, listen to me."
"I'm just saying," She shrugged, "we be thinking. He thinks, I think, she thinks..."
Mikey cut her off, laughing slightly. "I gave it some thought-"
"We think." (If you know what video this is, I love you.)
"Luna!" Mikey grabs her arms, trying to act like he's annoyed, but fails and starts laughing hard with her. "You should paint me."
Luna shook her head lightly, getting rid of the last few giggles she had in her system. "Your existence is supposed to be a secret. I wouldn't want to expose you just for a project."
Mikey waved her off. "You're an artist. Just make it abstract."
"Fine." Luna grinned and hopped up. "Stay still while I go get some paper."
Mikey smiles as she scurried away. Once she left out the room, his smile fell. His heartbeat was loud in his ears. Butterflies swarmed his stomach. He knew what this feeling was. He was starting to fall for the tomboyish, skater girl named Luna. He promised himself he wouldn't fall in love with anyone ever again in his life. Now here he is, a week later, sweating and nervously fumbling with his hands as he tried to talk to her.
Mikey didn't know that as Luna walked away, she was feeling the same emotions. She never thought she'd fall for a mutant. Mikey was so different from anyone she had ever met. In a week, he's managed to make her feel emotions no one else has ever made her feel before.
Luna sat back down and began to create her masterpiece. Mikey poses with a goofy smile on his face.
"Hey, Mike? Do you know what it's like to love someone?" Luna asked, catching the young turtle off guard.
"Uh, yeah. Twice actually... Not the best experience." Mikey cringed.
Luna put her sketch down. "What happened?"
He sighed. "The first girl I met moved around a lot. She was like a free spirit. She really only came around when she needed to be saved. The other one... she never really gave me the time of day. She's out of my league. By out of my league, I mean she likes girls."
"Please explain." Luna crept forward.
Mikey blushed at their closeness. "Well, uh, I have this stepsister. Her best friend, the girl I liked, name is Shini. The night I told her about my feelings, she told me that she was dating my sister. I thought it was just her way of curving me, but then I asked my brothers and they all knew about it. I guess I was too blind to notice."
Luna put her hand over Mikey's. "Don't feel bad. You'd be surprised how often that happens to people."
Mikey raises his head. "Really? I'm not just dumb?"
Luna laughs lightly. "No, Mikey. Seriously, you shouldn't feel bad about it."
Mikey lunges and tackles her in a hug. She hugs back, blushing fiercely. Mikey takes in the smell of her hair products and releases her from the embrace.
"I'm really glad that I met you. Everyone else treats me like some idiot."
Luna gives him a small smile. She punches him in the shoulder playfully. "You're a goofball, but you're no idiot. I'm glad I met you too."
~~~~~
Over the next few months, the two skaters realize that love can be easy, as long as you don't make it hard.