Chapter 1 – The Ring and Bake Show
I walked apprehensively out of the cramped corridor that connected my plane to the airport. Gripping my bag tightly to my side, I scanned the sea of faces for some form of familiarity, but none came. I didn't know what I was expecting, this wasn't like the movies where there was some uplifting music playing in the background and everything runs in slow motion for the big reunion.
This was real life, and I still had to get my suitcase from the carousel and worm my way through the inordinate amount of people at Tampa International Airport. It was by far the furthest I'd ever travelled on my own, spending an entire twenty- four hours on the plane. But all of that was going to be worth it when I finally got to meet her.
When I stepped out into the international lounge, there were hundreds of people all greeting their loved ones, and even a few people holding up signs with surnames scrawled on them. I shouldn't have been surprised when I spied a large sign with a ninja turtle plastered on it with the words "Welcome Pie!" and various hearts scattered around. A huge grin claimed my face and I dashed towards the sign.
It was lowered to reveal a smile that mirrored mine and for a couple of seconds, time stood still. When full realisation sunk in, I flung myself at her and wrapped my arms all the way around her. She matched my actions and we stood like that for a few moments, finally embracing each other after months of talking online.
"Shelle!" I finally managed to croak out through the river of tears that had burst from my eyes.
"Pie!" She exclaimed back, refusing to break from the long overdue hug.
"I can't believe it's actually you!" My voice came out as a high pitched squeak, desperately trying not to break down. Shelle loosened her grip on me and held me at arm's length, taking in all my features. I'd seen pictures of my friend, of course, we'd exchanged hundreds of pictures over the months that we'd been talking, but nothing could have prepared me for seeing her in the flesh. It was a surreal feeling, like I was meeting a celebrity that I'd only ever seen on television.
The funny thing was, before Shelle and I started talking on the website Tumblr, I had actually thought of her a celebrity. She was adored by hundreds on the website and I often heard her name mentioned in positive light. So when we did finally start to talk, I was nervous, wary of her.
I couldn't have been more wrong. Shelle and I had spoken every single day since then, getting ourselves into all sorts of mischief. And now, now, it was time to make all that a reality.
After another round of hugging and crying, we headed back to Shelle's car and made the trip back to her house. Florida was a really beautiful place; I'd landed on a lovely sunny day and the rays beat down on us as we drove. During the journey we spoke nonstop, all about our various shenanigans on Tumblr and most of all about our beloved Tumblr Turtles.
This website was a place for people to express themselves through their own personal blogs, and we'd stumbled upon four incredible ones. We had bonded over a mutual love for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and as the Tumblr Turtle's blogs got bigger, we grew with them.
First was our dear leader, Leonardo. He had been the one to start it all off, long before I even joined the website. He wrote of tales of the turtles' adventures, and eventually it turned into an ask and interaction blog.
Then his brothers Raphael and Michelangelo joined. They had to share one blog, as Mikey needed to be looked after. He is the baby of the team after all.
Months of pestering finally found the last brother, Donatello, joining the little group and he brought with him our friend April, who Shelle and I had both interacted with many times.
It was a perfect setup, and we marvelled in the time we spent chatting and interacting with the Tumblr Turtles' blogs, even becoming part of their wonderful group.
Deep down, we knew it wasn't real, but the characters were so well portrayed that occasionally, we had to remind ourselves that there were actual humans behind these blogs. It didn't stop us from having a fantastic time though, and befriending them like they were, in fact, real.
As we approached the house, I took in the aesthetics of its façade. A large canopy covered the walkway leading to the large black door. It was very different from what I was used to in Scotland. The front garden was huge, and I imagined it took a lot of work to keep it as tidy as it was.
As soon as Shelle opened the front door, I was bombarded with barking and slobbering. "You remember Bonnie and Micky, right?" Shelle chuckled, pulling the two dogs back. I giggled back, bending down to greet the first of Shelle's pets.
"Hello guys, it's nice to meet you!" Bonnie, a rough sable collie, gave me a welcoming lick on the nose and Micky, a pit-bull beagle mix, barked along in the background, cheering his sister on. I glanced up at Shelle, who was beaming with pride and gave her a knowing look.
"What?" she asked.
"You know what," I grinned, placing my bag on the floor.
"You want to see the turtles, don't you?"
I nodded enthusiastically, shooting to my feet. Shelle took my hand and guided me to her spare room. There in a large glass tank were the two turtles, Shelley and Tommy, who I'd been dying to meet.
"Look at them! They're so cute! Remember when I drew them?"
Shelle burst out laughing at the memory. We'd once decided to have a doodle war on Tumblr, and it resulted in me drawing caricatures of the two turtles. We both fell about giggling, and I knew at once that I had made the right call in travelling halfway across the world to meet her.
All through the evening we chatted, discussing all the fun times we had talking on Skype and Tumblr. But most of all, we discussed our love of the Tumblr Turtles, and how much they'd won our hearts. We collectively wondered about the humans behind them, and what kind of people they were. One thing was for sure, we admired them graciously.
One of Shelle's cats, Elvis, had curled up on my lap and was purring gently. I was so happy to finally have conversations with her in person, and I was not disappointed.
The night wore on and before we knew it, it was three in the morning. Shelle showed me to my room, and then I sat heavily on the bed. It had been a fantastic day, but she had many things she wanted to show me in the morning.
We said our goodnights and I lay in bed, marvelling at the success of the day. Soft rain began to caress the windowpane, cascading down the smooth surface. I listened as the sound grew stronger until it sounded like a marching band right outside. Eventually I drifted off into a peaceful sleep, my dreams filled with fantastical images.
Author's Notes: Well guys, the adventure is just beginning. I hope that you've enjoyed the first chapter of this personal journey. I want to thank Faithfulwhispers for being beta for me and being such an amazing friend. I also want to thank the wonderful Shelle for all her support with this. Lastly, of course, the actual Tumblr Turtles: leonardo-hamato80, mirth-and-muscle, turtle-super-genius and blog-ask-april-o-neil - my true friends.