Flames of the Past #4: A Tangle of Lies (A Ninjago Fanfiction)

Chapter 6

Cole breathed in the crisp air, leaning against the balcony railing. He hadn't had a balcony attached to his bedroom back in Shillvaron. Rainy whined beside him and he scratched her head, smiling as she wagged her tail. He was trying to get out and clear his head. A lot had been going on recently, and it was beginning to overwhelm him.

"What do you think, girl?" he murmured to his dog. "Should we grab our bags and get out of here?"

Rainy gave a loud bark, then whimpered and lay on Cole's foot.

Cole laughed softly. "Yeah, me too," he mumbled before gazing back into the distance.

At that moment, the balcony doors flung open.

"Gosh!" came Jay's exasperated sigh. He crashed against the railing beside the black ninja. "Nya's driving me crazy, dude!"

Cole glanced sideways at him. "What's going on?" he asked.

Jay sighed again. "You know we're engaged now," he started, "so I've been thinking about the future. You know, like getting married."

"Already?"

"I don't want to stay engaged forever," Jay pointed out. "I want to have a wedding. I want to marry her. And I want it to be special." He looked down. "But she only wants to think about the here and now. She said she doesn't want to talk about it, yet. That we're ninja, and we have other responsibilities, and blah, blah, blah..."

"And you thought it was a good idea to come to me for relationship advice?" Cole raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn't Lloyd be better at this?"

"Oh, because he would be the perfect person to ask after how his marriage ended up," Jay scowled.

Cole raised his shoulders, ruffling Rainy's fur. "I think Nya has a point," he said. "You are ninja, and right now, we're knees deep in this mission."

"We can't be ninja forever, Cole," Jay murmured, gazing into the distance. "We're not teenagers anymore. And sooner or later, I want to settle down. I want to raise a family... with Nya."

Cole scoffed in disbelief. "Ninjago's always going to need ninja," he argued. "If one of us were to have a kid, they'd grow up like Laurie is. With us, going on missions. Being a ninja is a big responsibility."

Jay gazed at him. "Then maybe someone else is supposed to step in and take our place," he offered. "Ninja don't last forever. Shouldn't we have a chance to live our lives how we want? You must know what I'm talking about."

"I can't say I do," Cole confessed, returning his gaze. "I'm a ninja. That's all I am. What else would I do with my life?"

Jay heaved a defeated sigh. "Well, I guess you've never exactly been a romantic," he grumbled.

"Or fond of children," Cole added.

"Then what are you doing out here?" Jay prompted. "You look distant, so I know you're thinking about something."

Cole shrugged.

Jay furrowed his eyebrows. "Cole, if you're seriously not over Vanessa after all this time—"

"I am over her!" Cole snapped back.

"Okay, jeez!" Jay puffed. "Then what are you thinking about?"

Cole groaned in frustration. "Everything else," he breathed. "Garmadon, Miss Beech, the mission, Lloyd..."

Jay's face started to fall. "I guess we're all still thinking about Garmadon," he said. He thought for a moment. "What about Lloyd?"

"I don't know, I just... can't get it all out of my head," Cole hissed, gripping his hair. "I want it to stop."