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AU where Cole and Jay were childhood best friends
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Cole huffed as he climbed the steep mountain. If only Jay could see him now, was his rueful thought. He hadn't seen his best friend in 4 years. Well, that was if they even were still best friends. Cole didn't know where they stood after so long.
Since joining the Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts, every moment of his time had been spent practicing singing and dancing. His visits to Ninjago had grown few and far between and on the rare occasions he had stayed for a while, he had been stuck being grilled by his father on what he had learnt, when he was performing, how he was doing in class, and so on. Little by little he had lost contact with Jay, it would've been a miracle to even catch a glimpse of his childhood best friend when he had been back in town.
Soon enough, he had grown tired. Tired of dancing, so sick of just performing and tired of all the pressure to continue his father's legacy. Eventually it all become too much and so, he had stolen away in the middle of the night. He never looked back.
Considering this, coupled with the recent passing of his mother, Cole supposed it had been easy to accept the old man's - was it Sensei Fu? Wu maybe?- offer. But even now, as he was ascending the mountain to where he knew his training would be, Cole was beginning to have second thoughts.
What if it was fake? A trick to lure him in and trap him? After all, what made him so eligible to become a ninja? Why him and not anyone else?
Cole imagined how Jay would react in this situation. He was always so adventurous, ready to go out and explore. Open to opportunity, seizing the day and never looking back. Jay had the kind of optimism that Cole always envied, but he couldn't think of anyone more suited to the trait than Jay.
It was with these things in mind that Cole finally drew near to what looked like the doors of - a monastery? Here, so high up, the pale sky seemed close enough to touch, the clouds hanging around the building, sparkling in the cool morning mist.
He hesitated, lingering at the great wooden double doors, one hand hovering over the handle. Taking a deep breath, he steeled his nerves, knocking firmly once, twice.
The heavy doors creaked open slowly and he was greeted with the smiling face of the man who's name he now definitely remembered to be Wu.
"Welcome." He said, "Your teammates await your arrival.
Cole was puzzled, he had no idea that there would be others too.
Nevertheless, with one last glance around, Cole followed Wu into the courtyard of the monastery.
All of a sudden, a loud clear voice pierced the air, bright and bubbly, happy and free.
Cole felt a swooping sensation in his stomach, a tingling feeling spreading all over. He would know that voice anywhere. The voice that he heard daily growing up. The voice that comforted him when he was feeling down. The voice that had weakened with sorrow the last time they had stood together in the treehouse. And the voice he had longed to hear for so, so long.
Jay
Cole took off running, following the sound of his best friends voice, distantly aware of Wu following swiftly behind.
At last, Cole burst into the living room, and his eyes fell upon the figure standing at the other end of the room. His auburn hair, no longer in childhood curls, seemed to shine copper in the sunlight and his blue eyes were as bright as ever. He hesitated.
Jay stilled, his voice trailing off, his breath seeming to stop as his eyes latched onto Cole's.
Ebony met cobalt. The world stopped.
Close to tears now, Cole shot across the room, ignoring the other person in the room and his shout of surprise. Cole flung himself onto Jay and clung to him, trembling as he held the auburn-haired boy close.
Jay's eyes were filled with tears of their own, as he squeezed Cole tight, afraid to even let go for a second for fear he would disappear again.
And then they were laughing, and crying, eyes brimming with happy tears and hearts overflowing with joy, laughing with sheer relief and ecstasy, rejoicing, for they were lost without the other and now they were whole.
~~~~
Later on, Jay and Cole sat on the roof of the monastery, looking up at the sky. It was painted dark blue with splashes of purple here and there. Glowing brightly was an infinite amount of stars strewn and scattered across the sky in a number of patterns and constellations.
Cole listened, amused as Jay recounted the tale of how he had met Sensei Wu, waving his hands with grand, dramatic gestures to embellish his story. Of course Jay tried to build a pair of wings, he was always trying to invent things when they were little. And it was so typical of him to go crashing through a billboard.
Soon the two were swapping tales of their adventures during their split, Cole finishing a whole cake in one sitting, Jay pulling a prank on his teacher, Cole running away from his school.
On and on they talked, their laughter ringing out through the cool night air. Before they knew it, an hour had passed, then two, then three, until the glowing sun began to slowly rise over the horizon. The sky was streaked with pink and orange and blue, creating the perfect canvas of the new dawn. From where they were sitting, at the top of that high mountain, the sun seemed to illuminate the whole world before them, bathing it in an iridescent glow.
The sun's golden glow touched the heads of the best friends, one dark-haired and the other auburn-haired, like a shining halo of light. Their laughter quieted as they both took in the breathtaking sight - the sky, the clouds, the sun, the world stretching out before them.
"I missed you." Cole breathed, staring up at the lightening sky.
"Me too. I always hoped I would see you again." His best friend replied, his voice quiet in the still morning air.
"Now we can always be side by side." Cole spoke softly.
"And always together without the fear of losing each other again." Jay continued.
Cole saw Jay turn to face him, his piercing electric blue eyes joyful.
The rest of the world seemed to fall away, as Cole and Jay's gazes met and held, both softly whispering one sentence in unison.
"We just had to be brave."
A/N: -_- You can tell I ship Bruise XD
Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Feel free tocomment and vote See you next time! :)
