Mikey is finally able to end the call with Arimi, three glorious hours later. He secures the faux basement door and places the 'borrowed' phone back on the counter. He is startled and jumps behind a bookcase when Amber steps up to the front door. She walks in, sees her phone, rolls her eyes and grabs it, throwing it in her bag. He watches her head toward the stairs when she suddenly stops. She digs in the bag for her phone and holds it. It's very warm. She wakes it up and sees her battery life almost depleted. She scrolls through her call log and her eyes widen.

"Mikey! Mikey are you still down here?" She spins around, shooting her eyes about the darkness of the shop. "Come out, you little sneak!" She slowly stalks the room and then leans over the counter… no one there. "You might be a ninja but you can't hide from me forever." She stops in the middle of the room and sits on the couch. "Mikey, I am giving you to the count of three to come out and talk to me before I go get Raph, and we both know he doesn't like to solve issues with his words!"

She doesn't even have to say 'one'. Mikey rolls out from behind a bookcase and walks over to Amber, sitting next to her on the velvet sofa. He huffs a sigh and folds his arms. He does not look at her. "So Amber, how was dinner?"

"It was dandy. You wanna tell me why there is a one-hundred and eighty-seven minute call on my cell phone to a certain number in Japan?"

"I would never lie to you Amber. So no, I do NOT want to tell you why."

"Damn it Mikey, you'd think you'd know me better by now! I'm not angry. Well, I might be when I get my phone bill, but I'm actually very intrigued." She scoots closer to him and smiles. "Tell me everything."

Mikey chuckles softly with relief. Suppose he does tell Amber. He could get a women's perspective on the situation, and he would finally be able to share his feelings. He would never be able to tell his brothers what he had done, especially Leo. There is always some danger involved when speaking to humans. What if Mikey doesn't have the same luck as Raph? What if he does? He relaxes his shoulders and turns to Amber. "I… she called you and I called her back. We talked and we just opened up to each other. I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking."

"I do. You saw your chance and you took it. Honestly, ever since you told me about Mitsu I really wished for you and Arimi could meet. It's all too weird to be just coincidence. I guess I'm eager to see if there's anymore to all of this."

"I know! Me too! After seeing her picture I had to know more about her. I was too embarrassed to ask you. But then she called and I heard her voice and… wow. We have so much in common. She's totally cool. This is my first time being able to talk to a girl like this. I feel so, I guess, excited. And she's so smart! She's like a brainiac but doesn't talk to me like I'm a total dumbbell."

"You're not a dumbbell Mikey. Don't take to heart what your brothers say to you. No matter how old you get, you'll always be their little brother and little brothers are the easiest to pick on. You see the world in a different way. Just because your world is never dark and gloomy doesn't make it fake. I'm sure Arimi likes that about you too… I want you to keep talking to her."

"R-really? But how?"

"You can always use my laptop. Create an account on Facespace and 'friend' her. I wouldn't be surprised if she's trying to find you now. You may not be able to put up any pictures but at least you'll be able to speak… and won't be spending anymore of my money."

He stretches his mouth in embarrassment. "Ok… but why? Why do you think I should keep talking to her?"

"Mikey, it's what you want to do, and it's just talking. It never hurts to make a new friend. And I can vouch for Arimi. She is very kind and super friendly, genuine, like you. Neither of you have ulterior motives. You both give, not take. Besides, she's on the other side of the world. There really isn't any chance of you two ever meeting."

Never meeting… Mikey knew, in the back of his spastic mind, that he may never meet Arimi. Yet, something told him that would not be the case. Was it hope, just a stupid fantasy, or maybe something more? "But doesn't she know where the bookstore is?"

"I didn't exactly tell her but I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to find. Mikey, I would never invite her here. Arimi will be my friend for life, a long distance friend. I told her we can be pen pals and that she can write me anytime. I am a little surprised she called me so soon. I'll have to get back to her… I hope she's not the clingy type. Come to think of it I didn't meet any of her friends while I was there… Anyway, you guys are too important to me to just open my doors to everyone I meet, even Arimi. She may be a great person but that doesn't mean I can trust her to know everything about me."

"Just like those people you went out with tonight?" He asks.

She stares at him, frowns, and then nods her head. "Yes Mikey, I'll go have dinner with them, maybe see a movie. I'll laugh with them and share jokes. I'll talk politics and share my joys and pains of running a business, but I will never let them in here." She places her hands over her heart.

"Are you fine with that… to keep this part of your life secret forever?" He places his hands over his chest. "You ok with looking like the lonely, old, cat lady with no cat when they notice you never dated, or got married, 'looking' like you've lived all by yourself in this big building?"

She gives him a small smile and pats his shoulder. "Mikey, I made that decision a long time ago. I don't care what they think so long as they don't get curious and start snooping around. I'm happy being with Raphael even if I we can never marry. I'm happy to live my life with all of you. And I'll always have April and Casey if I never need to voice my frustrations about you turtles." She teases. "My shop owner friends, they know about me losing my biological family… I found it was hard to tell them. I thought it would be just a courtesy for them to know. But they were angry that I didn't tell them sooner, that I didn't invite them to share my loss. On the other hand, it gave me the opportunity to keep them at a distance from my personal life so I don't risk losing my new family."

He hesitates. "About that… You… don't talk about them much to us either. I mean, it's cool if you talk to Raph about what you're going through but the rest of us want to know how you're doing too."

"I'm fine Mikey. I'm doing fine."

"Ok, but if you ever want to…"

She stops him by shaking her head. "No Mikey. Just know that my wounds are still healing and I'm not ready to speak fondly of them…" She stops her lips from quivering and continues. "I'm not ready to make them just a memory, ya know? I want to feel like they're still here, just too far away for me to see them."

"Like how I felt with Mitsu…" He says. She nods. "Amber, how about this; I'll find Arimi online and hope she wants to keep talking to me. I feel this connection with her and I do want to be her friend. But you have to promise me that anytime I share something with you about her, you have to share something about your family with me."

"Thanks Mikey but that's what my journals are for. I don't want you to carry the burden…"

"It's not a burden. I want to know. I want you to tell me about 'our family', how it's like to have a mom, growing up in a home; all that stuff. It's great that Raph is your true love and he's got your back forever. But I want to help you too. However I can. I don't mind being your living diary. You can be mine too."

Mikey knows just what to say to take the heavy out of every situation. She understands why April calls him 'Sunshine'. At that moment she prays that Mikey finds love someday. She doesn't know what it should look like or who it could be. If it happened for her and Raph, it only makes sense for Mikey to have it too. Would he find it with Arimi? She doubts it, but anything is possible. God, please! Mikey has a beautiful heart and a lot of love to give. You wouldn't have made him like this for no reason. Please do it.

She rests her head on his shoulder and wipes a tear from her cheek. "Mikey, I'm so glad I have you as my brother. I love you. You are one terrific turtle."

"And what am I, old sushi?" A deep, gruff voice comes from behind them. Mikey and Amber turn to see a large shadow on the other side of the bookcase walk over to them.

"Hey Raphie. You weren't eavesdropping were you?" Amber asks.

"Naw, I promise. Just came down to check for you. Thought you shoulda been home by now from dinner." Raphael says as he comes around and stands in front of them. "Ya didn't answer any of my texts neither."

"Well, like a goof I forget my phone on the counter before I left. And Mikey and I have been having a little heart-to-heart since I got back." She says.

"And you…" Raph looks at Mikey. "Where you been all night? You said you was gonna make spaghetti for dinner. We got tired of waitin' for ya so we just ate leftovers."

"I lost track of time reading comics. Sorry Raph."

"Hmph. Musta been some great comics for you ta miss a meal." Raphael smirks.

"Well I'm hungry now. I gonna go find some grub." Mikey gets up and walks toward the stairs. "Thanks a lot Sis. Good night Raph."

"Anytime Bro." Amber calls after him.

Raphael helps her to her feet and hugs her tight. "You wanna tell me what Mikey's thankin' ya for?"

She leans into him and kisses his cheek, smiling impishly. "I can't lie to you Raphael. So no, I don't wanna tell ya."

"Hmph." He snorts.

"You gonna tell me what you texted me earlier?" She asks.

"Nope, you gotta read 'em and find out." He smirks and leads her upstairs.

…

The next afternoon Mikey sets up a new Facespace account. It was easy and fun… but not quick. He first needs to setup an email account and he does. He chooses the name 'ClockWorkMikey ' and his Facespace username as Michelangelo H. He tries to lie as little as possible and hide as much as he can. Since he can't upload a picture of himself he finds a free stock photo of a little turtle in a chef's hat. Perfect. Now that he is all set up he types her name in the search engine. But wait. He would look like a straight psycho if she found his page and he and NO friends before her. He decides to shop around and make some friends first. He finds April and Casey and sends requests to them. He sends a request to their antique shop, Bubba's Bookstore, Hyppo, Bean Counter, and Charlie's. He finds some of his favorite pizza parlors. He searches for people who skateboard, surf, cook, draw, and make comics; he searches for his favorite bands and singers. After three hours of searching he gets an alert that someone is answering his request. "It's April!" Once he confirms friendship status, April's page and friends become available for him to view and send requests to them as well. "Whoa, it's like a world-wide web is connecting everybody!" He awes. He scrolls through April's friends and sees a strange name; Norsta-Donnie. He also finds 'That Raphael Swag'. "Hmm I had no idea they were on here." He doesn't send a friend request to his brothers. He doesn't want them to find out about Arimi indirectly. A few more confirmations come in from random people. "I guess five friends is enough? Maybe she'll think I keep a tight circle." He licks his lips and searches for her name. He finds two Arimi Ks and selects the one from Japan. He sends a friend request, attaching a short message: "Good morning/ evening! I hope this is you. I'd like to hear from you again. From- your new American Friend.

"I hope she answers soon." Mikey says. He turns off the computer and rubs his eyes. He decides to start the spaghetti dinner he had forgotten to make yesterday. At that moment, however, Arimi Kirisawa is confirming his friend request and fervently writing him a response. Let the clandestine conversations commence.