A Deer in Headlights -Jaya Fanfic: Alternate AU

Chapter 1- Run

Nya POV:

That's it. I'm dead.

In the marooned midnight of the Sea of Sands, the slow motion scene plays out in front of me. Right in front of me. The daze of the car's headlights radiate onto my tan body, getting closer and closer and closer. Just then, I feel a single tear falling from my right eye and down my cheek as I realise my fate was in this random driver's hands.

Screech!

The car slams down their brakes, and swerves, narrowly avoiding my body, the air rushes past me as my ponytail flies around lost in the draft, the machine crashes on the left hand side -the direction I had been previously running from. They had stained the road with the amount of force exerted in that millisecond. And, for the first time in my life, I hesitate, should I continue running or check on the driver who practically crashed their car for me? I don't know.

But before I can make my decision two men start evacuating the vehicle to - well I don't really know to be honest- but it seems quite important at the rate I hear them unbuckle their seatbelts. Then I make my decision, I run.

I could hear someone yell "Miss! Are you alright!?" Or at least it sounds like that I am too fixated on the sound of my feet hammering into the rocky biome, trying to speed up and reach my destination as quickly as humanly possible. Besides, I had made the choice to not make conversation with a stranger as to why I am running in the middle of a desert, with only my phone and wallet, whilst wearing an orange jumpsuit... great; I should've stolen another of my brother's hoodies to disguise myself a bit more. Yet, I continue stampeding into the inky summer's night, still hearing the distorted voices of the men trying to get my attention, I choose to ignore them, I don't need them.

Jay POV:

"WHAT ON EARTH WAS THAT!?" I screech into my bestfriends' ear.

"I DON'T KNOW!" He states.

"WHO-HOW-WHY-What..." I was dumbfounded and after studying Cole's face, he was too.

"Do we call the police?" Cole questions.

"I guess, I mean it's not everyday I run into- no almost drive into a random person who looks like they've just RUN AWAY FROM PRISON!" Now, I am overreacting, to be fair, as we don't even know where the girl had come from. But I couldn't help but wonder what was she doing out here? It's the middle of a summer's night, the air is humid- I'm practically sweating and there's nothing other than Ninjago City for at least 30 miles. To say that I am worried about her was an understatement. Plus when I saw her, I don't know it sounds stupid now, but she felt important. FSM, it really does.

Cole goes to pick up his phone from the passenger seat, I stay outside still yelling into the abyss hoping for some sort of reply- but at this point it was futile. I'd seen her run and she was fast so rather sooner than later -I gave up.

"Argh- there's no signal!" Cole calls from my notable blue Mercedes.

"That's great!" I reply sarcastically, "As if our situation couldn't get any better!"

"Jay, now's really not the time to be joking around, we just saw an escaped fugitive, for all we know, who's lost in a desert! Or no, maybe she's just some random teenager who happened to take long night strolls in a DESERT! Or wait, she could just be some regular girl running in a desert! You know the usual pass time!"

And I thought I rambled.

I brush my hand through my brown hair and quickly become lost in my thoughts... I feel a sort of sympathy towards her to be honest, what could she be doing out here? What is she running away from? I hope it's nothing bad-

"Hello, EARTH TO JAY!" I hear from the car.

"What?"

"Did you seriously not hea- Y'know what, Jay just drive to a gas station or anywhere where we'll have a signal so I can call the police."

"Yeah, I was thinking about that Cole, what if the girl, she's running from something or someone?"

"All the more reason to turn her in."

"I guess, I just want to help her..."

"Jay, the best way to help her is to. Turn. Her. In."

I know he's right, so I floor it to the nearest gas station.

Once we got there, I decided to fill up on petrol because well, I may want to look for the girl? It's stupid (believe me I know) and Cole will surely try to knock some sense into me. But she feels important and I sort of want to see her again . Ugh, Jay you're out of your mind, STOP!

"There's still no signal out here, I'm going in the shop." Cole glances at me, I return with a nod before he begins walking inside.

But then, I notice something eerie in the corner of my eye. Truth be told, I really hate horror movies and this feels like the beginning of one...

Nevertheless, I scan my surroundings. The station is being lit by 2 lamp posts, their yellow haze has turned almost everything around it the same colour, I'm standing in the middle of a casual concrete strip, it's rough underneath my trainers; I can feel every bump and all the unevenness - I am acutely reminded as to why I don't usually visit deserts or gas stations. But tonight was different, Cole and I had just been at a party... It sounds bad but it was just a meetup with a couple of our friends: Zane; Pixal; Skylor; Dareth; Rumi etc. People we trusted and definitely not a massive party- even though we have hosted a couple of those! FSM, I'm blabbering again!

Back to the thing I noticed,I turn to look at it again but it's vanished? Naturally, I try to think back to what it looked like. Two tiny, timid, twinkling dots, they were also saturated to a yellow because of the lamp posts- I think. FSM, I have a bad memory...

Wait... 2 dots, twinkling under light... Eyes!

Jay, you're a genius.

I am suddenly brought back to sitting in the car, speeding down a highway before seeing the image of a girl - around 17-19 a couple years younger than me- sprinting at full speed just up ahead of us. My headlights shone on top of her raven hair and saffron outfit with a cobalt blue t-shirt beneath it. Ok, maybe I do have a good memory... Suddenly, she stopped in the middle of the road and turned her head to look at us. I gazed into her distressed mahogany eyes before rapidly gripping my hands on the steering wheel, and turning like my life depended on it-

"JAY, WE NEED A DESCRIPTION OF HER DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT SHE LOOKS LIKE!" Cole takes me out of my daydream, his head poking out of the door.

"N-No! Sorry, I completely forgot!" Admittedly, this is a lie but I don't know. I have the strangest feeling that she doesn't want to be found.

"You're useless, you know that!"

"Do you remember what she looked like, dirtclod!"

That made him go silent before slowly turning his head back inside and resuming his conversation with the operator. I roll my eyes and come inside to pay for the gas, and grab a couple snacks ; I was getting 3am cravings!

Nya Pov:

Are they gone? My phone flashes in the moonless night, as I unlock it to check the direction towards Ninjago City. I am running away, I have to keep telling it to myself because it doesn't feel real. I am in the middle of the Sea of Sands and it still doesn't feel real. I needed to leave though. I had no other choice, I didn't even say goodby-

Police sirens.

Don't tell me those idiots called the police.

"Miss are you out here!?"

They did.

Being in the desert, I find it extremely difficult to hide from the lights so I sprawl myself out on the sand and begin military crawling to the city... If I ever see those two again I'm going to murder them.