Transgender Jay : A Ninjago Story

41 - Unconscious

(Warning. This chapter contains bad language.)

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At last, the screen flickered, the vivid image of the man's gleeful, twisted face faded from sight, replaced with a flustered reporter, frantically trying to apologise for what the entire nation just saw.

Jay yanked his hand out of Cole's steady grip and sprinted out the door, streaking down the corridor away from the television. Far far away from it.

"... Jay! Jay wait!" Cole called after him, breaking into a run as well.

The game room was left in silence. Lloyd collapsed onto a pillow, resting his head in his hands, while Nya and Zane stayed stood in the corner, evaluating what had just befallen them all.

Kai broke the silence.

"... sh*t." He said. A single vulgar word.

Funnily enough, it summed up everybody's thoughts perfectly.

Cole followed Jay as best he could, at last coming to a stop at the bathroom, where Jay burst inside and wobbled over to the mirror above the sink, staring at his reflection in the foggy glass.

"Jay..."

His shoulders shook with ever sob that escaped his lips, wracking his body with jolts and jitters. He still couldn't breathe properly, lungs heaving at every intake. It didn't get any better.

"... Jay... I... I'm so sorry..."

It was like he didn't even notice. His panic attack just got worse and worse and worse, before he could hardly even stay on his feet anymore.

"E-Everybody k-knows... the... the w-whole continent... everybody..."

"Jay... everything will be ok-"

"- nOTHING WILL BE OK!" He screamed, gripping the sides of the sink, his knuckles turning white, "EVERYBODY KNOWS, EVERY SINGLE PERSON IN THE WHOLE OF F*CKING NINJAGO KNOWS, NOTHING'S OK NOTHING WILL EVER BE F*CKING OK!"

Jay collapsed to his knees, breaking down.

"I CAN'T D-DO THIS... I CAN'T TAKE THIS... I CAN'T TAKE THIS COLE! I CAN'T!"

Cole couldn't take it and longer, he rushed forward and pulled him into a hug. He half expected Jay to push him away and scream at him, but... he didn't. He clung back twice as hard, wailing into his shoulder.

"I c-can't do this! I can't deal with this!"

"I know... I know... and I promise, we'll be here for you no matter what... Jay... you're my best friend... I'll never let you go through this alone... me... Zane, Lloyd, even Nya. We're all here for you."

His breathing didn't slow down, if anything, it sped up.

"Jay... you need to calm down... it'll just get worse if this carries on..."

"I... I can't... I can't I c-can't I can't breathe... I can't breathe..."

"Yes you can, you can... I know you can..."

"Cole, p-please help me...!"

"I can't help you... you can only help yourself..."

Miraculously... his breathing did slow down. Slowly, he returned to a steady pace. Cole smiled.

"There you go... see? You can breathe."

Then, at that exact moment, he went limp, the tight vice-like grip around Cole's neck disappearing instantaneously.