A vicious spring storm was passing over Ninjago City.
I sang a show tune to myself as I stumbled around the kitchen, prepping dinner. It was an apology to my mother, who'd I'd all but abandoned spending time with the past few weeks.
In favour, of course, for Lloyd.
Mum wasn't pleased.
But alas, I was free from exams, the ninja were out on a mission that had been dragging on for days and I was finally in my own home. Thunder cracked overhead as I placed the last piece of parsley over the plate of bacon and mushroom carbonara, Mum's favourite.
I hoped my sucking up paid off. I really didn't want to have to deal with being grounded after I just got my freedom.
"Hello!" I chimed from the kitchen when I heard the front door slam open from the force of the wind and the familiar mutter of a curse. "I made dinner!"
I could hear mum drop her bags and give an exhausted huff. She kicked off her heels before stopping at the entrance to the kitchen and pulled a dramatically surprised look.
"Hi, stranger," she said. "Excuse me, but I don't think this is your home." She held up her hand to her ear to mimic a phone. "Hello, police? Somebody's broken into my home. No, I don't know who they are-"
"Okay, ha-ha," I said dryly, picking up the plate of dinner and a fork. "Very funny. I'm sorry for only spending time with Lloyd, please don't ground me."
Mum took her dinner with a judging, thoughtful frown. Her hand returned to her ear.
"Police? It was a mistake," she said blandly. "It was just my daughter. I forgot what she looked like because it's been almost two weeks."
"I've popped in!" I defended, grabbing my own plate of food.
"For ten minutes at a time!" Mum accused, leading the way to the dining table. "You know, one good thing about your split was that I actually got to see my daughter for once."
"Alright, I get it," I groaned as we took a seat at the dinner table. "I'm a terrible daughter, I'm sorry."
Thunder cracked loudly. Mum pointed at the ceiling.
"Even the gods agree with you."
"More like the nerds do," I grumbled under my breath.
"What are you planning to do over the summer?" Mum asked, picking up a new topic of discussion as she scooped some food onto her fork. "I hope you're not going to be living in Lloyd's pocket. You're your own person, too."
"I know," I sighed. "But it's kind of hard when... y'know-" I tapped the bullet wound on my thigh. "It's not like I can get a summer job or anything. I have to be babysat."
"You could spend the summer at the site again?" Mum suggested, stabbing some bacon with her fork. "You used to can't wait for that."
That was before I met Lloyd.
"I don't know," I murmured, staring pitifully at a piece of parsley that I'd stuck into with my fork. "That'd mean I wouldn't be able to hang out with my friends as much - and then I'll be moving away next year for college, anyway."
"Where you go, Lloyd will most likely try to follow," mum noted. "I guess, for the sake of the city, you should stay home for the summer."
"Yeah," I agreed with a nod and a secretive grin. I'll stay home for Lloyd and the others. "For the sake of the city."
We ate a little longer in a comfortable silence. The storm created an interesting background song. Rain thrashed against the window and I felt a twinge of worry - I hoped the team were doing okay in this volatile weather.
"Who's going to be your bodyguard when you go to college?" Mum asked amusedly.
I paused.
"I... I don't know, actually," I said slowly, brows pulling over my eyes as I stared at the pasta. "I hadn't even thought about it."
She hummed, placing her fork down with a gentle clatter.
"Something worth thinking about."
I made a small sound of agreement, still lost in thought.
An hour later, I was listening to the storm while using the large green ninja plush as a makeshift pillow. The sound of the heavy rain was too alluring to drown out with music and I didn't want to read, so I just stared at the ceiling while the minutes wasted away. Sometimes I needed quiet times like this; doing absolutely nothing. A moment to myself while I prepared my mind for sleep.
My bed felt empty without Lloyd and I just couldn't seem to relax into slumber. I stared in irritation at the ceiling - why couldn't I fall asleep this time? Sure, I was relaxed and nicely so; but my brain refused to power down for the night.
Alright, body. I see how it is.
So I did laps of my room, pacing the confines while my feet scuffed against the carpet. I counted the seconds between the lightning and the thunder just to keep me mentally occupied.
