Days Go By | lavashipping

*.*.*.*.*

Just as he looked down to check his phone, somebody tapped him on his shoulder. There was no surprise when that somebody turned out to be Kai. A surprise was when he went for a hug and Kai kissed him instead. But it was a welcomed one.

"You ready to go?"

"Yes! I'm curious where you're taking me because as far as I'm aware you're still a huge Ninjago City virgin."

He took one of Kai's hands and pulled him towards a nearby bus station. "Well... I'm not sure how known this place is but I found it recently and thought-" Cole stopped himself, avoiding Kai's gaze but they squeezed his hand. "You know, I thought it would be a nice place to spend time with you, so."

"All right, where are we going?" Their bus was supposed to arrive in a few minutes. Not too long, however, Cole couldn't wait, he wished they could be there already.

"That's a surprise." He shook their hands a little. "But you don't mind the sight of water, right?"

Kai looked at him with a raised eyebrow and carefully replied, "No... I don't mind the sight."

"Good, that's good."

"Seaside, huh?"

"Don't play Sherlock now, I want this to be a surprise."

"Hmm, that would be an issue, you know, because my big smart brain just won't stop-" Cole kissed him, since from his own personal experience, that was an effective way to make minds malfunction and derail their trains of thoughts. It seemed to work, for Kai pulled him closer by the back of his neck. Unfortunately, it felt that just as they started kissing, the bus arrived and by that time Cole's priorities changed.

"Next time let's just stay at home."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure you'd like that."

.

It didn't take long to get to the seaside part of the city. Most of their ride consisted of Kai's head resting on Cole's shoulder and Cole rubbing the back of their hand with his thumb while they remained in their content silence. Walking down the street, Kai became alive again and started some sort of a game in which he pointed at different places, asking if that's where Cole was taking him. Despite barely ever walking through that part of the city, Cole's focus was on Kai instead of the nice sights he could walk by. Not even the shops' displays could make him look away.

Finally, the restaurant came to view.

"That one!"

"... Maybe."

"No way." Kai stopped and since their hands were still intertwined, Cole had to do so too. "I was just kidding!"

"What?"

"I mean... Mantray's can be pretty expensive..."

Cole shrugged. "It's fine, I'm saving money. And today's my treat, so don't worry." Kai still hasn't moved, so Cole walked back close to him. "Hey, I mean if you don't want to go I don't have a problem with that but they have a really pretty view I'd like for you to see. And today's a nice day too."

"No, I want to go! Nya keeps raving about their baked potatoes. And basically their entire menu."

When they walked up to the entrance, Cole asked for his reservation and the waiter walked them to a table for two on their terrace which was overlooking the sea. The sun was near the horizon, ready to set. Cole hoped the view would be as beautiful as he imagined. The few clouds changing colours along with the sky, seagulls flying across the light show. The rhythmic murmur of the waves and the chatter of the restaurant customers. Good food, Kai's presence, the famous ambience of nearby sea life. Could life be more perfect? Possibly, but this was more than enough for Cole.

Once they ordered, their waiter - Ben, he introduced himself as - walked away with the menus. He brought them their drinks and told them the food will not take long. Cole took Kai's hand which was laying on its own on the table. It surely must've been lonely without his.

"I really like your eyes." Looking down, Kai smiled. Cole leaned closer over the table. "I also really like your blush," he mused.

"I don't blush." Kai pushed him away with their free hand.

"Oh, you so do."

"You sure you want to play with the fire again?" Rising an eyebrow, Kai leaned closer just like Cole did before. "Will you never learn?"

"Maybe I like playing with fire."

Kai hummed, reaching over with his free hand. They twirled some of his hair around their fingers. "I like playing with your hair."

"What else do you like?"

"Hmm, I like your eyes."

"That's my thing, I already said that."

"All right, fuck your eyes then."

"That's so mean, we're in a public space."

"You know what, Cole?" He leaned in even closer, as far as the table allowed them to. "I don't give a shit," he whispered.

"I cannot believe I let someone with such a dirty mouth get even near my lips."

"You love my dirty mouth."

Cole finally cracked and the moment he began laughing, Kai joined in, even though they tried to keep their serious expression and voice intact. "This is the worst conversation we've had so far."

"What? Do you- Do you have something against my dirty mouth?"

"Shut up."

"You started it!" Kai kept laughing along until he gasped and poked Cole's chest. "Ooh, look who's blushing now!"

"I'm not blushing."

Kai nodded and Cole found his smile irresistible. His eyes seemed to shine with amusement, something Cole found to be strangely hypnotizing. He liked seeing Kai happy purely because it was nice to know he was happy but it was beautiful to look at as well. It felt almost ridiculous to him, how he spent most of his time staring at Kai and never got tired of it, never got enough of it.

"Uh-huh, sure you're not. Sure." They winked at him. "You don't have to feel bad, your secret's safe with me."

When the food arrived, they had to keep some distance. Which didn't stop Kai from leaning over and stealing the food off his plate because they 'wanted a taste' but it was a few too many times. Cole initiated a revenge and they evened it out. At least the food was worth the money, both in taste and amount. But most importantly, as they ate, the sun began to set - the moment Cole was the most excited for was there. Their table was nearest to the end of the terrace, giving them an opportunity to watch the sun go down uninterrupted. Their stomachs were filled and their hands were busy holding glasses with their drinks.

Kai sighed, catching Cole's attention. As if that was something difficult to do. "You know..." He shifted in his seat, his gaze glued to the sunset. Soft music was coming from inside the restaurant. "I wasn't really excited to move to Ninjago City at first. You know, big city and modern stuff and all that... But then I got to explore it and I think I fell in love, sorta. You know? All the modern and old architecture and how it's all mixed with nature. And you've got sights like this. I probably wouldn't trade it for the world."

"Yeah, I know what you mean."

Their eyes locked, Kai raised an eyebrow. "Do you?"

Cole turned to watch the sun slowly send their home to sleep. "Well, maybe I didn't get to explore it as much as you did yet but I think I found enough nice things to fall in love. With the city."

"Yeah. Nice things," he heard Kai mutter.