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Chapter Text

Ever since they were in kindergarten, Cole, Jay, and Zane were the definition of best friends. Cole was sort of the leader their group, always jumping up to defend his friends whenever someone would smack talk about them. Jay was the energetic one who would get teased for it. It was not like he could control that; Jay had severe ADHD. Zane was the peacekeeper and calmed both of his friends down when Cole was agitated or when Jay had too many jitters.

Even when they had the occasional bully, the three friends were often envied for their closeness.

Of course, nothing lasts forever. However, none of the three knew that their dynamic would change one day in the sixth grade...

"Jay, wait!" Cole called, running to catch up with the freckled boy. Electric eyes only sparked with laughter. The slightly taller boy groaned. "Zane, hurry up at least!"

"Coming," the aforementioned boy said, taking longer strides to join his friends. "Jay, are you doing alright?"

"Yeah, definitely! It's just that someone said that there would be a new student in our grade starting today, and I wanna meet 'em so bad!" the smallest of the three squealed. Sandwiching his face between his hands, Jay wondered out loud, "I wonder if they're nice. I hope they are. Maybe we can be their friends!" Before he could ramble on and spiral into different scenarios of what could happen that day, Cole hugged Jay from behind around his shoulders.

"Jay, relax. We'll know later. Did you take your medicine?" he asked. The freckled boy's nose scrunched, then his eyes lightened up when he seemingly remembered.

"I didn't have time to take them at home so I put them in my pocket!" Sure enough, Jay brought out the small Adderall pill from the back pocket of his pants. He frowned when he felt around the outside of his backpack. "Dang, I forgot to bring water..."

"Here you go." Zane came to the rescue, holding out a water bottle to Jay. He was known to hand out spare water bottles to whoever needed it; he liked being hydrated. He had also known the freckled boy long enough to recognize how often he was forgetful of little and big things. Jay freed himself from Cole's hold and hugged Zane.

"You're a lifesaver!" he thanked before popping the pill and downing about half if the water in one go.

"Of course. You're welcome, Jay," Zane said with a smile. Cole rolled his eyes.

"C'mon, let's get to school before Jay pees himself."

Class 1-A buzzed with excitement. One of the students revealed the new kid would be in this classroom.

The same classroom the iconic best friend trio was in.

"Alright, alright everyone! Settle down!" the class teacher, Mrs. Garmadon, who also went by Mrs. Misako, entered the classroom and gestured for the students to sit down. "Now, I know you're excited to meet our new student." A cheer met her ears and she smiled. "Okay, calm down. Come on in and introduce yourself, sweetie," Mrs. Misako said out into the hallway. The new student entered, and it was as if the entire classroom was holding its breath.

The new student was a boy, and he stood out in every way. His reddish-brown hair stuck out in spikes, giving off the illusion of a wildfire for hair. His skin was an even, dark tan that made him glow. His eyes, upturned, sharp, yet still large like a puppy's, were a stunning amber that burned brightly. There was a thin scar across his eye, leaving a notch in his eyebrow as well. There was a splatter of freckles on his cheeks. His face widened with a lopsided grin, flashing a set of braces.

"Haeį-laū! Jœw ńæn Kai sa. Deî læçho p'úx sa!" the new student announced loudly in a foreign language, his accent thick. The rest of the classroom was silent, and the new kid became flustered. "Imē..."

"Um, Kai." Mrs. Misako touched the student's shoulder. "They don't understand what you said. How about speaking in this language?" Face burning red, the child nodded.

"Imē, h-hello. My name is Kai. 'S nice to meet y'all!" he said once more, slurring his words and his accent making it harder to understand him. There were soft greetings from the rest of the class.

"Tell us some things about you, Kai. Let's start with what you said. What language was that?" Mrs. Misako questioned. The new student, Kai, tugged at his sleeve.

"It's old tongue. My people still speak even if it's not common anymore," he explained in broken speech. A girl in the front row of desks raised her hand. Mrs. Misako nodded at her, giving the girl permission to speak.

"Where are you from?" The boy smiled, showing off his braces again.

"Ignacia. Small village, not many people. I know everyone there and so nice!" he answered jovially. His face shined brighter than the sun when he grinned, almost blinding the others in the room. Although he was anxious when he rose his hand, Jay wanted to know the new kid more. Maybe they could be friends!

However, before the freckled boy could get called on, another student blurted out, "How can you speak our language so well?" Slowly, Jay brought his hand back down. His question was stupid anyway- What do you like to do for fun?

"Ignacia a good trade village," Kai began to explain. "Y'all learn when listen to trade happening. Techāito ï værmisha is good at trading." His voice had a proud tone to it. He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Techāito is father, værmisha is mother."

"Well, I hope you settle in well and enjoy going to school here. If you have any questions, just raise your hand and ask, alright?" Mrs. Misako told Kai. He nodded, understanding her well. "Okay, let's see... Cole, wave your hand so Kai knows who you are."

Surprised to suddenly being put on the spot, Cole slowly raised his hand. He put his hand down when Mrs. Misako pointed at the empty desk to his right. It had been empty since April and he rather liked it that way.

"That's your desk now, Kai. Everyone, take care of our new student, okay?" Every student responded with "Yes, Mrs. Misako", as they should. Kai made his way to the empty desk and sat down. He smiled at the three surrounding him- the pale blond with gravity-defying hair, the brunet with a galaxy of freckles adorned on his face and bouncing knees, and the shaggy-haired with really great eyebrows sitting right next to him.

"Haeį," the brunet greeted under his breath. "What are y'all's names?"

"My name is Zane. Pleased to meet you."

"I'm Jay. I like that you say 'y'all'."

After a moment of silence, the last to introduce himself said, "Cole."

Kai grinned wider than before. "Nice to meet y'all. I hope school goes good for me." He did not notice the faint blush on Jay's cheeks or Zane biting his tongue to not interrupt and correct the "good" to "well", or the glare Cole gave him from a side-eye glance.

Throughout the school year, Kai would leave the classroom to go to a special class. It was discovered on the second day that while he can speak the common language, the brunet cannot read it in any way or form. Although he should not feel happy about that, Cole was somewhat grateful for Kai's apparent illiteracy. Kai somehow wormed his way into his friend group and was hanging out with Jay and Zane a lot.

But Cole was not jealous. Definitely not jealous.

"Zane, what was the history homework again?" the noiret asked, sorting through dozens of doodles in his locker. He should probably start paying attention more in class; his father was not happy with Cole bringing home B-minuses.

"Pages two-hundred-forty to two-hundred-forty-three," Zane answered. When the blond closed his locker, he could hear two voices- Jay's being the first, then Kai's. Sure enough, the two brunets rounded the corner, giggling. The slightly shorter boy's eyes lit up when he spotted his friends.

"Guys, can we stop by the elementary school?" Jay asked, shifting from foot to foot. Cole raised a bushy eyebrow.

"Why? We never go by it." Cole stared at the spiky-haired boy standing beside his best friend. Noticing his gaze, Kai smiled. Jay shifted his stance again.

"Well, I... um. I kind of invited Kai to walk with us, and he always picks up his sister from school," the brunet explained through stutters. Cole sighed through his nose. Of course, Jay would do something like that. The past two months of school, he had been trying desperately to befriend Kai. It was a little difficult at first since Kai was hot-tempered and hard-headed, but the two brunets eventually grew close.

Rolling his eyes and slamming his locker closed harder than he needed to, Cole said, "Fine, let's go."

Already, Cole hated this change of their walk home. When it was just the three of them, they could just barely stand side by side without one of them being left behind or walking in the grass. With Kai present, he and Jay were farther in front, leaving Cole and Zane behind. He scowled.

"Cole, are you alright? You seem tense," the pale blond observed. The dark-skinned boy only shook his head, showing that it was not important.

"So, what's your sister like?" Jay asked, skipping along happily. Kai grinned, flashing the metal in his teeth.

"Best sister! I love her very much. She's three years younger but smarter than anyone else in her class, she tells me. I believe her," the brunet praised his sister. Turning to face Jay, Kai smiled wider. "I really like your eyes. They're so pretty."

Jay blushed immensely. In the second grade, he had been bullied for his eyes- his left eye a shocking blue, his right a warm brown. Cole took care of the bully for him (and the bully, Lloyd Garmadon, was sent to a boarding school in the middle of that same year), but Jay was still fearful that the same situation will happen again. Covering his face with one hand, he mumbled a soft "Thank you."

When the four boys arrived at the elementary school, they were able to hear the bell go off. In the next few minutes, children poured out from the entrances and ran off in all kinds of directions. One little girl with short black hair ran into Kai's open arms.

"Butkhá!" the little girl cried out, hugging the brunet tight. When she noticed the other three behind Kai, she waved and said, "Haeį!"

"This is Nya, my pyunū," Kai introduced. He began to have a conversation with his sister in the old language, leaving the other boys confused. Occasionally, he would point at the others, making the three wonder just exactly what he was talking about. Halfway through his sentence, Kai looked up and sheepishly smiled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Pærmrè, got carried away. We have to go now. Dýou-megh!" he said, waving and began to walk away. He put Nya down and held her hand.

"Bye-bye!" the little girl called out, her slate eyes shining back at them.

"She's quite the cutie," Zane commented as he waved back. Cole nodded in agreement. Jay mumbled something under his breath, which neither of his friends could understand. Together, the trio walked home.

It was summer break and to Cole, that meant only one thing: sleepover at Jay's. He loved going over to the brunet's house. Although it was a little crowded with furniture and trinkets, and Mr. and Mrs. Walker were both a little odd, Jay's house was one of the greatest places to be at.

"Bye, Dad!" Cole waved through the car window before his father drove off. He walked up to the door of the small house and knocked. While he waited, Cole reminisced about earlier sleepovers, back when Jay and his parents still lived in a trailer by the junkyard. The freckled boy was so scared that someone would find out and make fun of him for it. Cole would have beaten them up had that ever happened, which it never did, thankfully.

"Hey, Cole! Just in time! Ma made popcorn!" Jay announced once he opened the door. Smiling, Cole let himself in and walked into the living room...

Then dropped his pillow and blanket when he saw Kai sitting on the floor by the coffee table. Looking up, the darker brunet grinned and waved. "Haeį-mæo, Cole!" Across the table from the grinning boy sat Zane. He greeted the noiret as well.

"Hello, Cole. We're just about to vote on which movie to watch first," the blond informed. Cole gaped like a fish out of water before turning to face Jay.

"What's Kai doing here?" He pointed at the brunet, who was currently hunched over a textbook on the table, Zane most likely explaining whatever was on the page Kai was studying. Jay's fair skin flushed a deep pink. With his toe, he drew random patterns on the floorboards.

"I invited him... Should I not have?" Jay murmured. Like a switch, Cole's agitation turned into guilt. He hated upsetting his friends, especially Jay. He was more sensitive and did not like to anger others. Cole patted his shoulder in reassurance.

"No, Jay. It's okay. This is your house, so it's your sleepover," the noiret said, feeling warmer on the inside when he saw the freckled boy smile. Jay clapped and jumped uo and down, landing only on the balls of his feet.

"Ma, bring the popcorn out! We're going to watch a movie now!" he called into the kitchen and leapt over the couch, sitting right behind Kai. "By the way, what'cha doing?" He felt Cole sit next to him.

"I'm trying to practice reading the common language. I want to graduate from second-language class soon. Although, I don't want to leave Karlof behind," Kai muttered. Karlof was one of the other students in the special class. He was a transfer student from Metalonia since the fourth grade, but he still struggled with learning the common language. At first, the two boys had a sort of rivalry against each other, but they eventually worked it out. Kai chewed on his thumbnail, trying to decipher the sentences in front of him. He pouted. "I hate reading this."

"Well, you have to practice in order to get better," Zane advised. Kai frowned but continued to try and sound out each word.

"Alright boys, hope you pick a long one! I made so much popcorn!" Edna came in, holding four large bowls of popcorn in her arms. Jay and Cole stood up to help her. "Thank you, dears. Oh, Kai? Are you sure you can eat popcorn, what with your braces and all that?"

"I'll be fine, àiwe," Kai responded with a smile.

"Okay, just wanted to be sure. Now, boys, don't get into trouble or make too much noise. I love you, baby boy," Edna said before placing dozens of kisses on Jay's head.

"Ma!" he whined. He crossed his arms when his mother walked down the hallway to her bedroom, then grinned with excitement. "Alright, which movie? Oh, but first, what genre?"

"Horror," Cole answered without hesitation. Zane tapped his chin.

"Any sort of animation," the blond said. Kai only shrugged, closing his textbook and shoving a handful of popcorn in his mouth.

What a rebel, Jay thought. "Well, if we pick a horror, it'll be dark by the time it's finished, and we may or may not be surrounded by popcorn when the lights turn on. Sorry, Cole. Maybe next time." The noiret scoffed. "Buuuuuut, we could watch Monster House!" Scrunching his face in thought, Cole nodded and sat down on the floor next to Kai, a choice he already regretted. Zane sat on Cole's left, shifting the table so the boys could have more leg room. Jay took his place on Kai's right.

There were several reasons Cole did not like sitting next to Kai. One, he was really warm. (Okay, maybe that was not a bad thing but it was summer.) Two, he was whispering questions to Jay about the movie. Three...

Usually, Jay sat next to Cole during their sleepovers. However, not only was the former sitting next to the darker brunet, but he was also leaning on him. The thing was, it did not seem like Kai minded. In fact, he was patting Jay's curls.

By that point, Cole's focus was less on the movie and more on the two brunets beside him.

Jay swayed from side to side, mesmerized by Kai's singing voice. Zane hummed along. Cole, although he tried to resist, listened intensely while the tanned boy sang.

Jay's parents had a keyboard from back when Jay took piano lessons. Although he quit playing years ago, Mr. and Mrs. Walker still kept the keyboard. Now, Kai was playing on it while singing a song in his first language.

When he finished, Jay gave a standing ovation. "That was so beautiful! You should join the music club at school!" the smaller brunet cheered. Kai flushed and smiled.

"Thanks, but that's not my thing," he said.

"Well, I thought that was a great performance," Zane complimented the spiky-haired boy. "Cole, what did you think?" The noiret had his arms crossed, a scowl on his face.

"It was nice," he answered tersely. Kai flashed him a wide grin, which shook Cole to the core for some reason. Before Jay could demand an encore, the darker brunet got up and searched for something in the backpack he brought along. "So, what should we do?"

"Well, I'd suggest a campfire so we can make s'mores, but Pa's asleep and I don't want to wake him," Jay said. "Ooh!" He bent down and ate a piece of popcorn off the floor, making Zane cringe.

"I can help with the fire!" Kai proffered. Jay's face lit up.

"Really? You know how to?" His small body trembled with excitement, his fingers twisting among themselves to relieve himself. Kai nodded.

"Leæ, I set fires a lot back at Ignacia," he told the others with a smile.

"I think that's called arson, Kai," Cole said.

"Wöl, it was for my techāito's job. He was a blacksmith," he said and continued to search his backpack.

"My dad's a Royal Blacksmith," said Cole's mouth before he could stop and bite his tongue. He hated mentioning that part of his dad. It was really embarrassing for the young boy.

"I don't know what that is," Kai told him absent-mindedly before pulling out a headband from a pocket in his backpack and put it on. "Okay, let's make a fire!" He jumped to his feet and ran to the back door. Jay made a choking noise before joining the other brunet. Cole and Zane stared at each other.

"Why does he have..." the noiret began to ask. Zane shrugged.

"Just let him be," the pale blond told him before getting up as well. Not wishing to be left behind, Cole joined Zane's side. When they stepped out into the backyard, Kai already had a few planks in the fire pit burning. Jay was jumping around, watching the flames intently. "Jay, did you grab what we need to make s'mores?" The freckled boy froze in place.

"Crap, I forgot!" The boy ran back inside, the clattering in the kitchen loud enough to hear outside. He rushed back out with a box of graham crackers, a bag of large marshmallows, and several bars of chocolate in his arms. "I got 'em! Now help me before I let it all fall to the ground." While Kai tended to the flames, the other two boys took the chocolates and marshmallows. The darker brunet stood up and grinned at the others.

"Okay, ready!" They all sat around the fire and roasted their marshmallows. Although, Cole could not help but notice one thing among the four of them: Jay was sitting really close to Kai. Even with the fire's glow, it was easy to tell his face was burning red.

"Cole?" Jay whispered in the dark of the basement. The aforementioned boy hummed. "Can I tell you something?"

"Sure," Cole whispered back. He looked at the other two boys still sleeping. He heard the soft snores and turned over onto his stomach to face Jay. The freckled boy was sitting up, playing with his hands. "What's up?"

"You know how I had that crush on that girl back in the fourth grade?" he started shyly. Cole nodded, then added "Yep" when he realized Jay probably could not see him move his head.

"What about it?" he asked, urging Jay to continue.

"I... I think I might like boys too."

Cole almost made a noise loud enough to wake the others.

Chapter Text

Cole woke up later than the others, so he almost missed seeing Kai's parents and Nya for the first time. While he ate the breakfast Edna had prepared for the boys, he had to admit to it:

Kai's parents were incredibly attractive. Models had nothing on them compared to the brunet's mom and dad. Kai's mother ran her fingers through his hair soothingly while she held a conversation with Edna, while Kai's father chatted with Ed and the other boys.

"Your name is Cole, right?" Kai's father, Ray, began. The aforementioned boy nodded, swallowing his hash browns. "Butskháta talks about you and your friends a lot. All he ever talks about! 'Cole did this, Jay made that, Zane said it.' Nonstop!" Ray cackled. Cole felt his cheeks warm. Kai talked about them? He supposed that would make sense.

"'Chāito, too loud," Kai whined, rubbing his eyes sleepily. Kai's mother, Maya, kissed the top of his head.

"I assume you boys are treating my son well?" she asked in a way that seemed kind but had the undertone of a threat were they to say the opposite of what she expected. Jay nodded vigorously, his mouth full of waffles.

"Yeah, definitely! Besides, Kai's super nice! And really pretty and cute! I see where he and Nya get it from! You two are so beautiful!" Jay blurted out after he swallowed his mouthful of food. Then his face reddened once he realized what he had just said. "I-I meant- It's just that you- um," the freckled boy stuttered trying to explain himself. He felt a gentle kick on his leg and looked up to see Kai looking at him. He gave him a sleepy wink.

"Thanks, Jay," Kai said with a smile. Jay blushed again and grinned back. "'Chāito, 'misha, doesn't Jay have such pretty eyes?" Maya leaned closer and smiled.

She's like a mermaid, Jay thought.

"Truly beautiful eyes. I've never seen such eyes before," she commented. Ray nodded, stroking his chin and the facial hair there.

"Very nice. You're a unique kid," the man said, nudging Jay's shoulder ever so slightly. Nya ran into the kitchen, followed by Zane. He had finished breakfast earlier and had taken upon the task of entertaining the young girl. She jumped onto her father's lap. "Ah, pyunìchi! Ready to go home yet?"

"Yeah. Zane is fun to play with," Nya told her father. She waved at the boys at the table. "Kai, eat!"

"I am. Just tired," the darker brunette grumbled. Cole watched from the scene from his peripheral vision when something caught his attention.

"Kai, are you wearing nail polish?" he pointed out. Maya and Ray looked down at their son's nails. Sure enough, they were painted a shiny red coat. The woman grabbed her son's hand and inspected his nails with a gentle smile.

"Tsuyé. You've gotten better, Kai." She planted another kiss on his head. He grinned and looked back at Cole.

"Do you like them? I can paint yours before I leave if you want." Cole could hear Nya's whining and Ray shushing the little girl's whines. He shook his head.

"No thanks. I'd rather not." Besides, was nail polish not for girls? Why would a boy need to paint his nails?

"Do you have a clear polish?" Jay asked so quietly, he almost went unheard. Kai nodded and snapped out of his sleepiness, grabbing his backpack. He pulled out a nail polish bottle from one of the outer pockets.

"Hands," he ordered. Jay complied, spreading out his fingers. Kai got to work and painted each chewed nail with ease.

Cole stared at the two boys in the middle of a nail-painting session. So Kai was the one who made Jay come to the conclusion he had the previous night? Apparently, Jay had no standards. Cole definitely did even though he had never liked anyone before. It still applied, though.

"Done! Bye Jay. Bye Mr. and Mrs. Walker!" Kai said with a quick bow before returning his empty plate to the sink. He gave Zane a high-five and Jay a hug. (His small body looked ready to combust.) The darker brunet held out his hand in a fist, waiting for Cole to complete the act. Reluctantly, he returned the fist bump. "Bye guys!"

"Dýou-megh!"

"Goodbye!"

"Bye-bye!"

The entire Smith family left the Walker residence, and Cole accepted the truth that the family of four were indeed the world's greatest models.

Zane left some time after Kai, leaving Cole and Jay in the living room while the noiret waited for his father.

"So Jay, about last night," Cole started, sketching on a scrap of paper he found under the couch. "How'd you find out?" Jay blushed and tightened his grip on the controller in his hands.

"I guess I've just been liking boys about as often as I like girls. It's not weird, right?" he asked nervously. He wanted to tell his other friends but not at the risk of being bullied. Cole shook his head without looking up from his drawing.

"Of course not. Pretty sure there are tons of people like you. Why wouldn't there be?" Jay grinned and jumped, landing on his belly on top of Cole's back.

"Thanks, Cole. You're the greatest!"

"Yeah, I know," the noiret joked. "Now get off me. You may be skinny, but I'd still rather not have you laying on top of me."

Voices bounced around the walls of the gymnasium as children ran around, shooting hoops, or tackling one another. Zane and Jay sent on the bottom row of bleachers, conversing with each other, while Cole did pushups by their feet. Today was a free day in P.E., so the students did whatever they wanted to do.

"All I'm saying is that maybe we shouldn't compare everything to sliced bread," Jay concluded before looking around the packed gym. "Hey Zane, Cole. Have you guys seen Kai?"

"He had gotten in trouble earlier today for what he was wearing," Zane informed. Jay had been gone for the morning, having to attend a doctor's appointment.

"Yeah, he came to school wearing a jean skirt and leggings," Cole added, straining to complete his last set of pushups before collapsing to the floor. "Oh god, I'm tired." Jay chuckled.

"I bet he looked adorable. So, who reported him? Mrs. Misako doesn't seem like she'd do something like that," the freckled brunet wondered.

"It wasn't her. It was the headmaster," Zane stated. She smiled. "And you're right. Kai did look adorable. He had his nails painted again, too. He might have been wearing makeup, but I couldn't tell since I sit behind him." Cole rolled his eyes and sat up, crossing his legs.

"Whatever. It shouldn't have been that big of a deal. It's just clothing and fancy face products." Just as the noiret finished speaking, the door to the boys' locker room opened and Kai walked out, dressed in the required gym uniform. Zane noted that the brunet was indeed wearing makeup- eyeliner and mascara. His cheekbones were also glittery. "Well, speak of the devil."

Kai sat down at the edge of the bench Jay and Zane sat on, crossing his arms and pouted. His eyes were burning with anger. To avoid being bitten by the fire of Kai's temper, Jay scooted closer circumspectly to the darker brunet.

"Hey Kai, how you doing? Sorry I wasn't here this morning; had a doctor's appointment." The spiky-haired boy showed no sign of acknowledgment. "I, uh, I heard you wore a skirt to school today. I wish I had seen it."

"You'll see it after P.E., but I won't be able to do that anymore," Kai spoke up, glaring holes into the floorboards of the gym. "I can't wear anything considered 'girly' ever again. That means makeup and nail polish, too." Although it was subtle, Jay could hear a waver in the brunet's voice. He gasped and turned his body to face Kai more directly.

"What, why?! That's not fair! Why did I have to go to the doctor today?!" Jay shouted, falling backward. His head landed on Zane's thigh. The blond patted his curls down. Kai chuckled and Cole rolled his eyes again.

"It's because I was born a boy and should conform to the standards and stereotypes society placed on me the moment I was born," Kai said, the words falling from his tongue so smoothly and quickly, it was as if he had given the answer before. He gave a sly smile at the three of them. Jay lifted his head, Cole raised an eyebrow, and Zane tilted his head to the side.

"What do you mean by that? Are you saying you do not feel like a boy, but you feel more like a girl?" Zane asked. Jay reddened from his ears to his neck. Cole sighed. The freckled boy was hopeless.

"Oh no, I do feel like a boy. But sometimes, I feel like a girl. Then there are the odd days where I either feel like both or neither," Kai told them. Looking around the gym, the brunet leaned closer to the others and whispered, "My parents already know how I feel and let me do what I want. I just don't have a name for it."

Huffing, Jay pulled out his phone from the pocket of his gym shorts and began to tap the screen. Cole stood up and used his body to cover for the freckled boy. Students were not supposed to have their phones out during school hours. "Okay, I found something! There's something called 'genderqueer' and it's sort of like an umbrella term for other identities. Hold on, let me look through these..." Jay scrolled. Zane reached out and touched Kai's cheeks.

"What's this?" the blond asked. The brunet smiled.

"Highlighter. Makes it look like there is a natural glow. I've gotten better from last year," Kai explained, a proud look on his countenance.

"It looks nice."

"Mætçjoœ."

"Found it!" Jay announced a bit too loudly. "Okay, so. 'Genderfluid' is what I think it is. Basically, it means someone doesn't have a fixed gender and is, well, fluid," Jay explained. He looked up, his blue and brown eyes looking puppyish. "Does that sound right? Because if it isn't, then I can try to find another-"

"Jay, it's okay. I think that fits me just fine," Kai interrupted the freckled brunet's rambling before he could begin to spiral. He frowned, crossing his arms again and sighed. "Not that it matters anymore. Even if I feel like I want to wear a dress, I can't wear anything that is deemed remotely feminine," the brunet muttered. His sadness, for some reason, affected his friends. Suddenly, Jay sprang up like a jack-in-a-box.

"I have an idea! Kai, what's your phone number?!" the smaller brunet asked frantically.

Before Cole could say, "Now is not the time to flirt with the cute guy!" (and then he began to question why he thought-said Kai was cute), Kai shook his head. "Wöl, my parents can't get me one yet. Why?"

"Dang. Well, never mind. My plan will be a surprise for you!" Jay hopped around and almost fell and dropped his phone had Zane not grabbed the back of his shirt. "Thank you for saving my life, Zane."

The three of them had been accompanying Kai pick up his sister from the elementary school ever since summer break ended. The siblings had already left, but the remaining three boys were on the playground's swing set.

"So Jay, what's your 'plan'?" Cole quoted the word with his fingers. Jay kicked his shins.

"Because you're so rude, I'm going to tell Zane instead," Jay huffed. The pale blond clapped.

"Yay, please tell."

"Okay, so I'm going to send a mass text to everyone in our grade to come to school wearing whatever they can that's girly. So that includes dresses, skirts, makeup, heels, whatever!" Jay threw his hands in the air. "How does that sound?"

"It's nice, but there are a few flaws," Zane started. "One, some people might not own such items in their households."

"Well, then I'll add to the text that they should borrow from people who do have those things at home!"

"Secondly, what if not everyone likes Kai and would rather not participate? I know for a fact that Shade, Chamille, and Tox are not very fond of Kai," Zane continued. Cole made a noise in disagreement.

"Nah, they kinda do like him. They just act like they don't. I think everyone in our grade likes Kai, which is weird since he's still so new," the dark-skinned boy explained. Zane moved his head in a side-to-side "so-so" gesture.

"So, you guys ready? I was typing out the text while you two were talking, and now it's ready to send!" Jay shouted, holding out his phone, his thumb hovering over the "Send" button. "If you two don't have anything to use or wear, just stop by my house either tonight or before school," the freckled brunet grinned. "Countdown with me! 5... 4..."

"3..." Zane joined. Cole grinned. This was so childish. That was what made it fun.

"2... 1!" The text message was sent.

"Butkhá, are you okay?" Nya asked first thing in the morning. She was young, but Nya was a shrewd third grader. She knew when her older brother was upset. Especially since she had seen him put a bow in his hair only to sadly remove it. Kai smiled sadly.

"I'm fine, pyunū. Just sleepy," he told Nya. Their mother came out of the kitchen and placed their plates with their breakfast. Maya kissed the top of her son's head.

"Butskháta, if it is about what your szkopýe headmaster said about your clothes and makeup, ignore it. Do what makes you feel real," she said, poking Kai's cheeks. "Although, wear less of that shiny powder. I like seeing your freckles." The young boy laughed, which made the younger girl laugh too. Nya liked to see her brother happy. "Now eat, both of you. Do not be late for school. Where is that szkopýe of your father? He must eat as well."

"Ah, I'm here, aiiché," Ray said, smoothing out his work uniform shirt. He kissed her cheek and then his children's. "Don't call me that," he chuckled seriously.

"Techāito, værmisha, when do you think I can get a phone?" Kai blurted out. The entire room was silent.

"Perhaps," Ray began, smiling at his son, "if you get a good grade in your common language class." The man grinned even wider when he saw the fire spark within his son's eyes. Kai mimicked his father's smile, flashing his braces.

"Then I'll get the bestest grade ever!" he shouted, pumping his fist in the air. Nya cheered with him.

"'Bestest' is not a word, Kai," their mother corrected.

Kai did his best not to be upset that his friends did not walk to school with him that morning. He just wondered what he had done for them to leave him so suddenly. Did they not like the fact that there are days when he felt like a boy, other times a girl, or moments of an in-between? That might be it.

He wanted to wear a skirt at that moment but could not. He no longer liked the headmaster.

"Hey, Kai!" the brunet heard Jay's high-pitched voice. When he looked up from his feet and the sidewalk, he took a step back.

Jay was wearing a slightly oversized dress. His hair was in a weak attempt of pigtails. Behind him were Cole and Zane, dressed in similar attire. Cole had on makeup and a purple shirt of a butterfly that most would call girly. Zane had a long skirt and clip-on earrings.

When he looked around, Kai saw the same thing over and over: boys and girls were all wearing girl clothes, accessories, and even makeup on varying levels.

"Do you like my plan? Someone must have told the older kids what we were doing, so basically, the whole school's in on my plan," Jay said, swishing the fabric of the dress with his hands. "Headmaster can't tell people what they should and shouldn't wear!" the freckled boy screeched. Cole and Zane chuckled. They hoped Jay would never change.

"You guys... I," Kai shuddered, holding back tears. People he did not even know were doing this for him. Just so he could wear what he wanted to school and possibly others that were still hiding. He needed a hug, so he grabbed the closest person. It was Jay, which was perfect. "Thank you so much, Jay." Slowly, he felt the smaller boy's arms wrap around his body. He reached out for the others. "Join this! I need to hug you both as well!"

Although the headmaster had threatened to suspend multiple students, he had eventually given up. No one ratted Jay out as the mastermind of the entire situation.

The next day, Kai came to school with a braid in his hair and a dress. However, he had taken his mother's words to heart and wore less highlighter.

Jay may or may not have tried to count the faint freckles during class, and Cole may have felt his heart skip slightly when Kai smiled at him.

Chapter Text

Cole shivered, wrapping the scarf around his face tighter. He was walking alone that morning. Jay was sick and Zane had left school early to go on vacation with his father. He could walk to school with Kai, but he did not know where the brunet lived. It was a bit odd since Jay and Zane knew, but he did not mind. Just like how he did not mind walking alone.

He did mind the cold though.

It was almost winter break and the boy was rather excited to stay home for fifteen whole days with minimal homework to do. All the food he could eat over the holiday. All the cake...

"Cole!" The noiret heard someone call his name. He turned to look behind him and, sure enough, there was Kai running to catch up with him. The brunet grinned. "Hey, Cole! Glad I caught up to you. I get lonely after I leave Nya at her school." Stuttering, the darker boy looked the other up and down. He was wearing an oversized red hoodie and a beanie. It was several degrees below freezing.

"How are you not cold?!" Cole shouted, finally finding his voice. Kai looked down at what he was wearing. He must have seen something on the noiret's face because he smiled softly and put his palm against the still exposed flesh of Cole's cheek. Kai had no gloves either. "What are you- oh, whoa. You're really warm." It was like Kai had a fireplace burning in his gut. No human being should be this warm!

(Not hot. No, Cole will not admit to that.)

"Yeah, I know. Nya was cold, so I had her stand on my feet and be in my hoodie while I walked to her school," Kai explained. He put his other hand on Cole's cheek, and the other boy knew his face was growing warmer for other reasons. "It's funny. Ignacia is usually warm with very little snow. Nya and techāito are really cold. Værmisha is okay since she's not from there, but I'm more than okay. I guess I just don't get cold easily."

"That must be nice. Even when it doesn't snow, the city gets really cold and I hate it," Cole commented, shuddering when Kai removed his hands. They walked in silence for a few minutes when Cole realized that he did not really want that, now that Kai was with him. "What are you going to do over winter break?" The brunet shrugged.

"Depends. I don't know what my parents want to do," the boy answered. He grinned and turned to face the other boy directly, walking backward in doing so. "Cole, you have your own phone, right?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Can I have your number? I don't have my own phone yet, but I can call you from our house phone!" Kai said excitedly. "Maybe we can hang out over break! I hope Jay gets better soon so he can play with us, too." The brunet almost tripped over the curb for not paying attention to where he was going.

"Be careful!" Cole scolded. He added, "I guess so. Wait, do you have Jay and Zane's numbers?" The other boy nodded, continuing to walk backward. Cole sighed through his nose. Of course, Kai had his friends' numbers. Zane trusted too quickly and Jay was a hopeless romantic. "I'll write it down and give it to you at school."

"Hytäl!" the brunet cheered and hugged Cole. The noiret cringed at the sudden contact but did not say anything. He felt really warm.

And it was totally because of Kai's impossibly high body heat. Totally because of that.

Cole shoved the front door closed, glad to finally be back home and for winter break to start. Mrs. Garmadon had left no homework for the students to do, and the boy was grateful that such a miracle could happen. His fingers felt frozen. He rubbed his hands together and kicked off his boots. He wondered when it would start to snow. He liked the aesthetic of snow on the trees, roads, and buildings, but Cole did not enjoy having to trudge through it.

"Hey, Dad! I'm home!" he called out in the quiet house. He knew his father was home; who else would be playing music so loudly? He peeked into his father's studio and, as expected, there he was, dancing to the music despite his bad leg. When his father noticed him, Lou smiled.

"Ah, Cole! There you are! I have some great news!" his father shouted over the music. As Cole took off his outer layer of clothing, Lou announced, "I'm going on a short tour with the Royal Blacksmiths! And you're coming with!"

The room froze with tension.

"Dad!" Cole shouted, dropping his coat to the floor. "I thought I told you the last time that I never want to do those things, especially on school breaks! Dad, why would you do that?!" The boy ran his hands over his face and hair. The last time his father had done this, Cole had almost missed an entire month of school and spent weeks catching up on schoolwork and homework. Slowly, Cole took a deep breath and calmed himself. "I don't want to go. You should have told me beforehand you were going to do this."

Lou frowned. In all honesty, he had been so excited to be invited to go on a tour with the boys that he had not considered how his son would feel. Now that he thought about it, he had not been doing that since his wife had died...

"I'm sorry, son. I should have asked you, you're right. But I can't back out of this now. Maybe you can call one of your friends?" Lou offered a solution.

"Thanks. Sure, I'll try that." Cole frowned and clenched his fist, leaving the studio. Zane was immediately canceled out; he was on vacation. Jay could easily get Cole sick and the boy did not need that right now. The only person he could call was... "Kai." He was so lucky Kai had also offered to give his house number to the other. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and the slip of paper with Kai's number. He dialed and, taking a deep breath, pressed "CALL". It barely completed one ring before someone on the other line picked up.

"Hello?" Cole easily recognized the thick accent of Kai's voice. The brunet on the other side of the call gasped. "Cole, is that you? Hytäl, you called me!" Despite himself, Cole smiled and leaned against the wall.

"Yeah, I did. But it was actually to ask for a favor."

"Oh? What is it?" Cole took a deep breath. It was either Kai complied or he would have to accompany his father on tour. Please, please, please, please, please, please, please.

"Would it be okay if I stayed with you and your family over break? My dad is, uh, doing something really important and I can't really tag along with him." The line was silent and Cole was starting to get worried that somehow Kai was offended.

"Okay, I'm going to give you my address." Cole had a double take.

"Wait, aren't you going to tell your parents?"

"They won't mind. Do you have something to write with and on?"

Kai's home was small but seemed cozy. Cole shifted his backpack full of necessities and shuddered before knocking on the door. Hopefully, the house was warmer than the outside.

Cole heard running footsteps just before the door opened. He looked down and smiled at the young girl before him, wearing a hoodie that he recognized as Kai's from that morning. "Hey, Nya."

"Hi-hi! Are you going to live with us forever now?" the little girl asked, pointing to the overstuffed backpack. Cole shook his head with a smile.

"Nah. Just staying over break. Can I come in?" he asked. Nya nodded enthusiastically, even resorting to grabbing Cole's hand and pulling him in. He was right, the house was warmer.

"Eppêchójo bultīka. Take off your shoes," Nya ordered, pointing to the carpet. There was a neat row of shoes by the entrance. Obediently, Cole removed his shoes and placed them next to the second smallest pair that was most likely Kai's. Nya giggled. "Your face looks funny." It was true. The dark-skinned boy could not believe he was being ordered around by a third grader.

"Pyunìchi, is that Kai's friend?" a woman's voice called from the kitchen. Maya leaned out of the door and smiled warmly at the children. "Come in, you two. Cole, are you hungry? I'm in the middle of cooking dinner, so it will be ready soon."

"Yes, uh, thank you," the boy stuttered. Now he knew how Jay felt when looking at Kai and Nya's mother. She was like a siren. "Um, where's Kai?" Maya clicked her tongue.

"Nya, could you get your brother and father out of that room already?" she asked kindly. The young girl obeyed and skipped down the hall. Maya shook her head and smiled at Cole. "I'm sorry. I keep telling Ray that Kai doesn't need to know how to make his own knife, but that man never listens."

"Cole!" the aforementioned boy shouted and hugged Cole around his shoulders, taking the other by surprise. Cole came to a conclusion: Kai was definitely a hugger. The brunet pulled away and Cole got a better look at him. He was wearing a red cloth headband that kept his bangs out of his face and a white tank top that had probably seen better cleaner days. Cole may or may not had let his eyes skim over Kai's exposed freckled shoulders and muscles. Being a blacksmith's son had its perks.

Especially when Ray followed, wearing similar attire and had the muscles that would even make gods jealous. Cole swallowed thickly. Ray suddenly seemed a lot larger when he was standing and letting out bellowing laughter. He picked Nya up and sat her on his shoulders. The young girl cheered.

"I hope you're comfortable staying here, Cole. If you need to stay longer than previously thought, it is alright with us," Ray said with a grin and, for some reason, a wink. "Here, let me take your things." Cole held out his backpack and Ray grabbed it by the straps with one hand, the other on Nya's leg so she would not fall. He spoke to Kai quickly in their first language, the young boy nodding and going upstairs. "Don't worry, he is just changing. So will Nya and I. Stay in the living room?" Cole nodded, still a little uneasy with the titan of a man standing before him.

As Cole sat down on the couch, he inhaled the delicious smells from the kitchen. He recognized several foods like chili and some stir fry recipe. His stomach rumbled louder than he would have liked.

"I hear you're hungry," chuckled Maya. Cole's face reddened. "Well, dinner is ready. You wouldn't mind helping me set the table?"

"Of course not," Cole responded, standing up and entering the kitchen. The smells hit his nose even harder than before. Maya handed him three large plates with heaping servings of a vegetable-and-rice stir fry. Balancing the plates the best he could on his arms, Cole placed them on the placemats on the table.

"Thank you, Cole," Maya said, holding two more plates and a bowl of chili. "Oh darn, almost forgot the utensils. Here, sweetie." Maya grabbed five spoons. "You can start eating." Cole sat down in one of the chairs hesitantly.

"Are you sure? I don't want to be rude or anything," he tried to object, but Maya only held up her hand.

"No, you're hungry, and I will not allow anyone under my roof ever be hungry. Now eat. Kai, Nya, and Ray should not be long now." Grinning, Maya sat down across from Cole. "Here, I'll eat with you so it'll be less awkward for you." The boy smiled and picked up his spoon.

"Mommy!" Nya jumped down to the bottom step and ran to her mother. "Food now?"

"Yes, baby girl. Sit by me," Maya said, pulling out the chair on her right. Kai and Ray soon entered. Kai still wore the headband but wore more comfortable clothing. Ray sat down on his wife's left, which could be considered the head of the table, leaving two open seats left. The brunet just so happened to sit next to Cole. Suddenly, Cole found the meal in front of him to be incredibly fascinating.

As the family and their guest ate, Kai pulled something out from behind him and held it out for the darker boy to see. "Cole, look. I just made this today." His mouth slightly overstuffed with chili, Cole looked up to see a knife that was... well, there was no other way to describe it than ethereal. The shape of the blade was rather simple, having the appearance of a carving knife. However, there were indentations that made the blade seem like it was wrapped around by either vines or flames. The brunet grinned and Cole could not help but think of how much Kai looked like a puppy. "I finally got it right today. I wanted to show someone, so you're the special person to see it first aside from techāito." Cole could feel his face warm, but he was glad that his skin was too dark for the obvious blush to show. He just did not get why he was blushing in the first place.

"I wanna see!" Nya pouted, leaving her seat and crawling under the table to stand next to her brother. She giggled when Kai held the knife to show. "I like it. When can I make one?"

"Oh no, you're not doing anything like that," Maya interposed, shaking her head. "You've seen your brother. I don't want you getting hurt either."

"Mommy," Nya whined. She hugged her brother's leg, pushing her bottom lip out to emphasize her disappointment. It was at that moment that Cole realized Nya was a bit spoiled.

"Aw, pyunū, it's okay. I can always show you what I make and we can play with the wood," Kai offered, picking up his sister and sat her on his lap. Nya cheered and hugged her brother by his neck.

And Kai is the main culprit, Cole thought. He smiled. He had always wanted a sibling. Whether they were older or younger, a brother or sister, he did not care one bit. He just wanted someone to hang out with whenever he came home.

He laughed along with the family as they ate the rest of dinner.

"I hope you don't mind sleeping in my room," Kai said as he entered his bedroom. Cole followed almost bashfully. Kai's room was rather simple with a poster and drawing here and there. He handed Cole his backpack and smiled. "I don't want you to sleep on the couch. That would be rude."

"No, I don't mind. Thank you," Cole thanked, grabbing his backpack and opened it to search for his pajamas. "I'm really sorry for intruding on your break. I'm sure you had some sort of plans to do." Kai shrugged.

"Not really. Mostly just studying the common language. I can read some more complex texts, but it's still hard," the brunet explained. He turned around and, before Cole could even process what was going to happen, Kai had stripped down to his underwear. Quickly, he slapped his hand over his eyes.

"Whoa, dude! Give me a warning before you get naked!" he shouted. He could not see it, but Kai raised an eyebrow in the darker boy's direction.

"But you don't seem to mind when I do the same during P.E., especially since you do it as well and the other boys," Kai said and continued to change. "Besides, Nya and I shared a room in Ignacia and neither of us minded changing our clothes in front of each other." Cole sputtered.

"Yeah, well. That's different!" Cole groaned. "Whatever. Where's your bathroom? I want to change in privacy," he emphasized.

"Downstairs, the room opposite the kitchen."

"Thanks." Cole attempted to walk out of the room with his eyes still covered. Instead, he only succeeded in walking into the bedroom door that was left ajar. "Ow!"

"You should probably uncover your eyes."

"Yeah, I got that."

Kai had insisted Cole sleep in the bed, saying that he did not mind sharing and did not want Cole sleeping on the floor. Cole refused and wrapped himself in a better blanket burrito underneath the futon Maya had brought upstairs. He said he did not want to intrude more than he already had. While that was true, he had other reasons.

One, he almost saw Kai naked and that was... a surprise, to put it simply. Two, Kai was probably always unbelievably warm, so even if he was cold, the brunet might make the space under the covers too hot for the noiret. Three, Kai kept giving Cole funny feelings in his gut and he did not like them at all. (Cole decided to also ignore this reason.) Four- no, three now- Kai might get really clingy in his sleep. He was already touchy when he was awake, he was probably worse in suspended consciousness.

Still... he kind of did want to sleep in Kai's bed. That wasn't weird, right?

Cole listened to the brunet's soft snores and, despite himself, smiled. He wondered if Jay felt like this whenever he was near Kai. Cole's body felt tingly and he felt just a bit warmer than he did a few minutes ago. He shook his head and groaned in the pillow beneath his head. He really needed to sleep. Cole turned onto his side and looked up to try and see Kai's face. The brunet's long eyelashes brushed his cheeks, his mouth slightly open as he breathed.

Suddenly, Cole felt a lot warmer than before. He snarled and pinched his arm. He needed to stop whatever it was he was doing. In the end, Kai was just someone who somehow found his way into Cole's group and became friends with the three of them. Just a guy who happened to be genderfluid and wore what he wanted, had developing muscles as a blacksmith, could speak two languages, had braces, looked a lot like a puppy, really liked to hug others, with freckles that would never win against Jay's, skin that Cole really wanted to feel under his fingers...

Cole groaned and covered his head with the duvet of the futon. This was going to be a long night and an even longer break.

Chapter Text

Even though it was halfway through winter break, Cole still woke up confused as to where he was. He would take only a quick glance around the room to remember he was staying at the Smith residence. The boy groaned and fell back, trying to go back to sleep when his phone went off with a message. Grumbling, he picked it up and turned his phone on, seeing the message from Jay.

yo, wanna hang out? i'm feelin better :D

Cole grinned. He knew that this kind of hangout would involve going outside. Looking over to his side, he knew Kai would want to tag along. For once, Cole didn't really mind that. Kai might be able to keep him and Jay warm.

yeah sure. I'm staying over at Kai's tho. want him to join us? or should I even ask?

t(- n -)t

haha you're a mess

shut up coel but yea please bring him wth. see you both at teh park?

oh my god, let us eat first. I literally just woke up

o srry

no you're not

Before Jay could respond back, Cole turned his phone off and got up to use the bathroom. He tiptoed so he wouldn't wake Kai up. Apparently, he was somewhat of a light sleeper. He once got up in the middle of the night and ran to Nya's room when he heard her whimpering. In the process of doing so, he accidentally stepped on Cole and woke the boy up. When he returned to his bed, Kai apologized and said he heard his sister was having a nightmare and had to make sure she was okay. That was the second night and Cole still questioned as to what superhuman ability Kai had to be able to know what was happening to his sister two rooms away.

Must be an older brother complex of such.

After he finished relieving himself, Cole quietly walked to the kitchen when he smelled the scent of breakfast being made. He leaned over to watch from the entrance and watched Ray make scrambled eggs while Maya drank freshly brewed tea. Even though he thought he was being silent, the adults noticed him and waved him inside. "Good morning, Cole," the woman greeted, patting his arm as he passed her to sit down.

"Good morning," Cole echoed. He still felt nervous when he was around Kai's parents. They were both incredibly kind people, but they gave off a certain aura that could tell nations just how powerful they were and not to be toyed with. Ray was like a fire, wild and uncontrollable that will bite at any chance. Maya was like the ocean, calm for the most on the surface, but still dangerous and unpredictable. Ray approached him with a plate of scrambled eggs with chopped vegetables and toast.

"What do you want to drink?" the man asked, already picking up three oranges and juggled them. Laughing, Cole answered with, "Orange juice." Frowning, Cole picked at his food before taking a bite and almost melted. It was such a simple meal and yet it was heavenly. It was like when Zane cooked, just indescribable.

"I have to thank you again for letting me stay with you guys," Cole said after swallowing.

"Oh, stop already with all these 'thank you's, we don't need to hear that. We already know, Cole," Maya said with a smile. Ray made a noise of agreement as he squeezed the oranges. The woman put her cup of tea down. "Well, since you're here and we're alone, Ray and I want to get to know you more. Tell us about yourself, Cole." Blushing, the boy nodded.

"Okay, well... uh, I live with my dad. He's a Royal Blacksmith-"

"Sorry, I don't want to interrupt, but what is a Royal Blacksmith? I've never heard such a thing," Ray said, grunting when he accidentally made a spill. Cole smiled to himself, remembering when Kai had said something similar at Jay's sleepover.

"My dad's a dancer and that's his group name." After the two adults nodded and shared a noise of understanding, Cole continued. "Well, I'm a decent artist. I, uh, love cake. A lot. Um, I've been best friends with Jay and Zane since kindergarten. My dad tried to get me to enroll in the Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts, but I can't sing or dance, so yeah. Uh, I sometimes babysit. And I guess I can get sort of possessive and protective at times, but I don't mean harm when I do. Uh, I dunno. I guess I'm kind of boring," he finished, just as Ray placed a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice in front of him.

"Well, I find you quite interesting, Cole," Ray said, sitting down next to the boy.

"So do I," Maya responded, swallowing the last of her tea. Cole smiled and continued to eat. Several minutes later, Kai came downstairs with Nya holding his hand. She was rubbing her eyes tiredly and hugged her father's legs. "What, I don't get a hug?" Giggling, Kai approached his mother and squeezed his arms around her tightly. "Thank you. You kids want to eat now?"

"Yeah," Nya muttered and sat down. Almost as a relief, Kai sat by his sister instead of Cole. The boy ate the rest of his meal completely relaxed.

"Hey Kai, Jay wants to hang out. Wanna come with?" Cole finally mentioned the conversation with Jay. Instantly, Kai nodded.

"I wanna come with, too!" Nya whined. The boy smiled.

"Of course. But," Cole continued, "knowing Jay, we'll probably play outside. As long as you're both okay with playing in the snow." For the past several days, it had been snowing nonstop. It was still snowing but much more lightly. Although she frowned, Nya nodded. So did Kai. "Sweet. I'll tell Jay when we'll be at the park." The children ate the rest of their breakfasts in peace.

"I'm cold!" Nya announced for the umpteenth time while tightening the scarf around her face. She was skipping ahead of her brother and his friend, excited to be playing outside with the big kids at the park. She liked Jay, he was really funny. She knew her brother liked Jay, too. She hoped he liked her and Kai back.

"So am I," Cole agreed, hugging himself as his teeth chattered slightly. "Aren't you, Kai?" The boy was wearing his hoodie and beanie again, but he also had on gloves and a proper pair of boots. "Kai, you probably should have brought some snow pants, man." The brunet stopped walking.

"One, not a man right now, in neither gender nor physical body." Cole's face warmed despite the cold breeze. He had momentarily forgotten about the other boy(?) being genderfluid. He'd have to get into the habit of asking for Kai's pronouns, like Skylor in fifth grade when she kept insisting she was a girl until the school finally changed her name and the letter identifying what she has in between her legs. "Two... you have to wear special pants to play in the snow?"

"I mean, you can wear regular jeans, but then they'd get wet and so would your legs. Snow pants, they'd be the only thing that gets wet. Unless you have crappy socks," the darker boy explained. "So, um, what are your pronouns right now?" Before Kai could respond, they all heard someone shouting and saw that person waving both arms from on top of the slide of the playground in the park.

"Hey, you guys!" Jay called out, grabbing his friends' attention. He went down the slide and ran up to the others. He high-fived Nya when she held up her hand. He did the same to his friends, although his hand did seem to linger on Kai's. Even more notable was that the taller brunet did not pull away when their hands stayed together for a bit too long. Cole could see Jay's face redden. He rolled his eyes. The freckled brunet shook his head suddenly and hesitated before pulling his hand away from Kai's. "C'mon, let's do something before snow somehow gets to my underwear!" Jay ran to the playground, Nya chasing after him. He screamed when the younger girl caught up to him and tried to trip him, almost succeeding each time. Kai laughed loudly, Cole nervously joining in. The brunet grinned at the other boy.

"To answer, they/them," Kai said before running after Nya and Jay. Cole swallowed before joining the others. It was a good thing he was already outside because he needed to chill, like seriously.

"My pants are wet!" Nya screeched.

"I told you!" Cole shouted.

Jay shivered but was happy to be inside. He was even more ecstatic when Kai invited him over to stay at his house. It was so warm, it was amazing. Especially when his fingers felt like they were turning blue from how cold they were. He just wished Zane could have been there with them. The blond loved winter the most out of all of them. If Zane had been with them, he could have helped them make ten snowpeople instead of just four.

"Jay, look! I painted a sakura tree!" Nya showed the brunet her drawing. It was incredibly detailed, down to the smallest of cherry blossoms falling from the tree.

"Wow, that's so nice! Cole, better make a run for your money," he teased his friend, who only stuck his tongue out in annoyance.

"Jay, look! I made this!" Kai showed off the knife they had made with Ray. The freckled boy gasped and grabbed the knife.

"Whoa, this is so pretty! How can you make something like this?" Jay praised. Kai beamed with happiness.

"Practice, really. Thanks a lot. It took a long time to get it right," Kai said. "So you like it?" Jay was sure he could see Kai's cheeks darken a bit. He was sure his own cheeks were incredibly red by now.

"Y-Yeah, definitely! Y'know, I wanna invent my own things. I'm thinking about making a contraption where I can fly in the air like a bird! Maybe I can try to make my own robot servant, too!" the freckled brunet began to ramble. Although they seemed slightly confused, Kai nodded and smiled at the other's enthusiasm.

"Sure, dream on, Jay," Cole said. Before Jay could say anything, Ray and Maya entered the living room where all the children gathered. They were each holding two mugs of hot chocolate.

"Here you go. To keep you all warm," Maya said, handing Kai and Jay the mugs she held, Ray giving his to Nya and Cole. They all thanked the adults.

"Mommy, Daddy, look! Do you like my tree?" Nya showed off her painting. Ray sat down beside his daughter and laughed.

"That's amazing! Now I know for sure the two of you are my kids! You're both good with your hands!" he cackled before tickling Nya's sides. She screeched in laughter. Jay and Cole laughed as well, making sure not to spill their drinks. Ray paused his tickle attack to look at the freckled boy. "Oh, Jay! When do you need to return home? It's getting dark soon."

"Uh, I guess I'll leave in 'bout half an hour if that's okay with you."

"Of course it is. You're like family to us. So are you, Cole. Also Zane, so tell him that when y'all see him the next time," Maya said with a motherly smile. Jay grinned widely and Cole smiled shyly. This is what he wanted for a family. He sighed sadly. He missed his mom more than anything. He finished the rest of his hot chocolate.

"Bye, you guys!" Jay waved from his parents' jalopy as it drove away. Kai, Nya, and Cole waved back until they could no longer see the brunet. Kai yawned.

"I think I'm gonna go to bed, I'm tired. Goodnight," Kai said, kissing the top of Nya's head and gently punching Cole's arm. Shivering, both of them followed the darker brunet inside. While Nya followed her brother upstairs, Cole headed into the living room and gathered the empty mugs and took them to the kitchen. He began to wash them when he felt someone behind him.

"Oh no, Cole. Don't worry about that. I'll finish this up while you go to bed, alright?" Maya said warmly, patting his shoulder. Before the boy could insist on continuing the task himself, Maya grabbed the remaining mugs that were still filthy and scrubbed them clean. "Cole, I must thank you." Confused, he raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" Maya shut the water off and leaned against the counter.

"Thank you for being Kai's friend. We've had some... well, issues in the past with that part of Kai's life. It's difficult to talk about, much less think about. I just..." Suddenly, Maya hugged the young boy tightly. Although initially surprised, Cole returned the hug. "Thank you so much, Cole."

"Of... of course."

He grimaced at the cold hitting his feet. He looked down at his blankets on the floor. The cold was slowly getting to him. Maybe he could...

Cole sighed before lifting the covers and laid down on Kai's bed. Somehow, he found the other's soft snores and mumbling relaxing. He hoped Kai wouldn't mind him sleeping here in their bed. Sighing, he closed his eyes.

Chapter Text

"No, I don't think I'll be doing much over the weekend," Zane spoke into his phone, holding up a finger to silence his friends, especially Jay. The brunet pouted but obeyed, crossing his arms. He was in the middle of describing his project for his robotics class. "Alright, I suppose I can go. I'll go there immediately. Thank you, father." Cole chewed on the lollipop in his mouth.

"What was that about?" he asked, the curiosity getting to him. He also asked first so Jay wouldn't bombard the blond with stupid questions.

"The younger children at the elementary school are going on a field trip and my father asked me if I was willing to chaperone for them. I thought it'd be a nice thing to do," Zane explained. Jay gasped excitedly and skipped in front of the other two.

"Ooh, what's the field trip for? Can I go, too? School's so boring and I have nothing to do!" Jay whined, tugging on his hoodie's sleeves. Cole rolled his eyes and gently punched the smaller boy.

"One, you should have been listening to the headmaster's announcements because he mentioned the field trip like three days ago. Two, there's a deadline and you probably already missed it. Three, even if you didn't miss the deadline, which is highly unlikely looking at your track record, there is a limit to how many kids from each grade can sign up to volunteer, which is like two or three. Four, you do have something to do- homework and your robotics project," the dark-skinned boy told the other. Jay stuck out his tongue.

"Phooey! Deadlines are stupid! Why do you think I never turned in that summer packet from third grade?" The two boys stopped walking, leaving the other confused as to why he was so far ahead of them now. "What?"

"Are you telling us that the homework packet worth more than half our grade that you claimed you lost was actually never turned in?" Zane asked hesitantly. Jay nodded brazenly. Cole groaned.

"You can't actually be serious."

"Well, to be honest, I never started it in the first place and I just played video games instead."

"And you wonder why your grade suddenly dropped to a D."

"It was pointless, I tell you! We need new rules! Less homework! Fewer school hours! Naptimes after lunch!" Jay chanted loudly, pumping his fist in the air. Cole covered his face with one hand, embarrassed to even be walking within a five-kilometer radius of Jay at that moment. Zane parted from their group, heading in the direction of the elementary school. The freckled boy ceased his shouting to ask, "Dude, where are you going?"

"I'm going to the elementary school to pick up the chaperone forms so I know what I must do for the field trip. I'll text you both later," Zane said over his shoulder and waved goodbye to his friends. They weren't too far of a distance from the elementary school, so it only took the blond a few minutes to arrive at the building's front door. The bell must have already rung because children were already out and about in the hallways. Silently, he approached the front desk and waited for the secretary to take notice of him.

"Hello, dear. Oh, Zane! Is that you?" the secretary gasped. She smiled warmly. "You've gotten so big! How are you doing in middle school?"

"I'm doing well. I'm here to pick up a chaperone form for the field trip the younger kids will be taking this weekend," Zane explained. The woman nodded and pulled out a thin packet of two pages. "Fill this out, alright? I'll be right back." She got up from her chair and left the office, presumably to use the bathroom. As the young boy signed what was necessary, he could hear two familiar voices echoing from down the hall. Standing up from the chair he was in, Zane peeked around to see Kai and his arm being pulled by Nya. The blond waved at the two coming.

"Hello." Kai grinned shyly, unlike how he normally is.

"My brother's going to help with the field trip! He already signed up and everything!" Nya announced proudly, finally letting go of her brother's arm. Zane smiled and bent down slightly.

"Is that so? That's fantastic! I was just signing up for the same thing. I'll be glad to see a familiar face during the field trip," Zane said, mostly to ease the uncharacteristically nervous brunet in front of him. "By the way, where is the field trip taking place? My father didn't tell me."

"It's at an ice rink! We're going skating!" the young girl told the blond. Zane grinned widely. He loved the cold, everyone who knew him knew that. He had ice skated many times before and enjoyed the activity quite a lot. He was now even more excited to chaperone the little kids. Nya squealed and hugged her brother, jumping up and down. "Ooh, I can't wait for tomorrow! It's going to be so much fun!"

"Yeah, it sure will," Kai said happily, although something about his tone made it feel as though he was uncertain about his own statement. At least, that's what it felt like to Zane. Before he could ask the other anything, the brunet grinned widely. Zane could see two rubber bands peeking out from the back of his mouth. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Zane! Bye!"

"Bye!" Nya echoed, waving her hand wildly. Zane waved back in a more controlled manner. He smiled at the girl's enthusiasm. He didn't know why the thought suddenly came to him, but the blond knew Nya was going places in her future. Her very near future.

Zane pocketed the money into his hoodie as he entered the ice rink. Altogether, there was close to fifty children waiting to skate. As much as he was happy to help chaperone, Zane was grateful that the elementary school was small and the average classroom size was very small, about ten to fifteen children in each class. He scanned the area, noticing some of the older kids from his school before he finally spotted Kai, who was eyeing the ice rink from the window warily.

"Good morning, Kai. It's good to see you," the blond greeted. Kai turned to him, a slightly surprised expression shifting to a warm one with a smile.

"Morning, Zane," the brunet repeated, his amber eyes flicking back to the ice rink. Zane frowned.

"What's wrong?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing," Kai answered quickly. Too quickly in Zane's opinion. He noted the sudden clenching of fists with Kai's hands and how his right eye twitched ever so slightly. He didn't say anything though, especially when the teachers were leading the children to the ice rink after they finished paying for their admissions, pushing open the double doors. The children lined up to get their skates. The student chaperones aided those who couldn't tie their laces properly so they wouldn't trip and fall on the ice. Zane remembered when he first started skating. Even though he rarely fell, when he did, it really hurt. He watched Kai help his sister stand on the blades and walk across the floor to the ice. They were having a quiet conversation, but Zane could tell they were speaking in their native language. Nya was the first child on the ice. However, Kai did not follow his sister, so she had to hold onto the wall until she was able to clumsily move on the ice. Soon, the other children joined her, chaperones included. The teachers would be remaining outside for whether a child needed to check in or out of the area.

Zane got up and walked over to Kai. "Ready?" he asked with a smile.

He did not expect to see a fearful look on a normally cheerful face.

Kai rapidly shook his head, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of the wall. "N-no. What if th-the ice breaks and then we all fall into the water underneath? The sharks will get us then!" Kai stuttered in a trembling voice. Zane nodded, finally knowing what was going on.

"Are you scared?" he asked earnestly, no ill intent to tease the brunet. Slowly, Kai nodded. "Don't worry, the ice is too thick to break. And there are no sharks, believe me," the blond added to comfort the other. He held out his right hand. "Here, hold onto the wall and I'll help you up if you fall. I'm assuming you can't skate either?" Giggling, Kai nodded again.

"Mætçjœ, Zane," Kai thanked, hesitantly putting one foot on the ice. He squeezed the hand he was holding tightly before placing his other foot on the frozen surface. Zane joined him by his side and smiled.

"See? It's not so bad. But if you want, I'll stay with you as long as you need." He enjoyed seeing the warm smile spreading across the brunet's face. They moved slower than a snail's pace, but Zane didn't mind. The two of them held a conversation as they gradually circled the rink.

"Y'know, I didn't really want to do this," Kai suddenly said. He stopped skating (if he could even call it that).

"Why did you come, then?" Zane asked, stopping as well. The brunet jerked his head in his sister's direction, who was playing a game with some of her classmates.

"Nya convinced my parents to sign me up. She likes to mess with me, as I do with her. She knows I can't skate because I get scared." Zane raised an eyebrow.

"Nya? She doesn't seem like the type to do something like that." The blond was even more confused when Kai giggled.

"And I do?"

"Th-That's not what I meant."

"No, no, I get it. But if you think that, then you don't know me and Nya at all. You can ask our old babysitter, Mrs. Grumbmiller. She can tell you all kinds of stories."

At that moment, Zane realized just how odd and mischievous of a person Kai actually was, as well as Nya.

It happened out of nowhere. Zane knew to always move to the walls when one stops skating to avoid collisions with other skaters. He had forgotten to do so with his focus on his conversation with Kai. Nya had skated over to surprise her brother and his friend but couldn't stop in time. She slammed into Zane and he fell on his face onto the cold surface.

When he sat up, he realized many of the young children were screaming. Nya was one of the few who was quiet, but her jaw hung open. She was staring at Zane's left leg. The blond gasped and tried to reach for the prosthetic that had come off, but it was too far.

"Wait, let me get it, Za-" Kai cut himself off when he bent down but lost his balance instead, falling onto his back. Some of the kids laughed, including Nya. Zane scooted on his behind and grabbed his leg, then continued to move towards the exit of the rink. A teacher helped him up while one of the older chaperones aided Kai. Zane removed the skates and began to hop away from the rink. He was embarrassed, to say the least. He jumped slightly when he felt someone wrap their arm around his waist and his left around their neck. Kai smiled and stood up straighter. "Let me help you without falling on my butt this time." Despite himself, Zane smiled. "Where should we go?"

"The locker rooms. Turn left. That door over there," the blond instructed.

"I see it." They entered the fortunately empty locker room. Kai led Zane to a bench, where the blond relaxed and set down his leg. The brunet joined him and began to fidget, his knee bouncing and his thumbs twiddling. "So... mind telling me what that was about? Why did your leg come off?" Zane sighed, rubbing his chin. How could he start this?

"Do you know what a prosthetic is?" The brunet shook his head. "Well, a prosthetic is an artificial device used in replacement of a limb or something of that nature. Let me show you." Before Kai could say anything, Zane removed his pants, as well as his other leg. "See? I don't have any." He smiled, but there was no emotion to it. When he looked up, he was rather shocked to see tears in Kai's eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Why don't you have legs? That's so sad!" the brunet cried out, poking the fake legs. Zane chuckled.

"I was born like this. I had two arms, but my left was deformed and what my father called 'gimpy'. He told the doctors it was best to amputate it. I believe his exact words were, 'Why would I let my son live life with a badly made arm when I can make him a perfectly useful one?' My father is very gifted," Zane praised. He loved his bionic arm, almost as much as he loved his father. Kai's bottom lip still trembled.

"What about your other arm? Is that one not real?"

"I was lucky to be born with one good limb at least. Although it sucks. Even with a bionic arm, I can't seem to write with it even though it responds to the shift of my muscles. I always wanted to be ambidextrous," the blond commented. He smiled and was happy to see Kai did the same. However, he still crossed his arms.

"So why didn't you tell me about your... uh... prothesics? Did you not trust me?" Zane grinned wider and chuckled at the mispronunciation of the word.

"Prosthetics, Kai. I just didn't think it was necessary to mention it at the time, nor did I deem it important. No one asks anyway since I wear sleeves to make the prosthetics appear as flesh. Cole and Jay didn't even know until the third grade when I decided to show them," Zane explained. Kai nodded in understanding. "Still, I'm sorry for not telling you. I think I may have scared most of the kids."

"Nya thinks it was cool," Kai told him.

"How do you know?"

"She's my sister. I know how to read her." Zane chuckled. He showed Kai how he put on his prosthetic legs and demonstrated how he controlled his bionic arm. The brunet added commentary with complete and utter wonder and amazement. He really was adorable.

Chapter Text

(Jay was eating breakfast at ten in the morning when his phone went off with a text message. He shoveled another spoonful of cereal before opening the message. It was from an unknown number.)

Unknown: Go

Unknown: od

Unknown: morn

Unknown: ing

(Jay decided to send a text. After clicking 'Send', he noticed he was in a group chat with Cole [DadFriend] and Zane [IceIceZaney]. He was Motormouth, the nickname Cole gave him in kindergarten.)

Motormouth: new phnoe who dis?

Unknown: eve

DadFriend: what's going on? Jay who's the number?

Unknown: ry

DadFriend: what the hell, where's Zane?

IceIceZaney: I believe the person is trying to say "good morning" to us, although I don't know who it is.

Unknown: one!

Motormouth: omg zane was rihgt as aways whos surprised tho

DadFriend: ha I'm not

DadFriend: okay but seriosuly, who's the number?

Motormouth: WHOM ARE THOU STRANFER

DadFriend: *seriously

IceIceZaney: Be nice, they're trying their best.

Unknown: kia

Unknown: kai

Unknown: hi!

(Jay held in a shout. Quickly, he added the number to his contacts and named it "Prettyyyyy". He was so glad the name would not be known by the others. Zane wouldn't get the reference of his, and Cole hates being called the dad friend, even though that's literally what he was.)

Motormouth: COLE

Motormouth: YOU SWORE

Motormouth: HOW COULD YUO TANIT KAI IM GOIG TO SCREMA

(He didn't, but Jay did almost drop his phone in his bowl of remaining milk because of his frantic typing.)

DadFriend: it's not even a bad word Jay, what are you talking about?!

IceIceZaney: Guys, stop. Spring break only just started yesterday, I really don't want to see the two of you arguing already.

Motormouth: srory

Prettyyyyy: I got a

DadFriend: oh shit he back

DadFriend: WAIT NO

Motormouth: COLE STOO SWEARIG

Prettyyyyy: phone yesterday!

Prettyyyyy: :D

("Ma, I'm done eating! I'll be in my room!" Jay called out.

"Alright, sweetie!" his mother answered. "Don't hide out in there all day!")

DadFriend: are you trying to figure out how to type?

Prettyyyyy: Yes

IceIceZaney: I can help you if you want. Just come over to my house.

Prettyyyyy: No

Prettyyyyy: I got it.

Motormouth: wel you ddi set uo the geoup chat so i thinkg youre learnign quick

Prettyyyyy: Jay, maybe you should learn how to spell

Prettyyyyy: You're fingers are tiny enough to touch the letters

DadFriend: I'M SCREAMING

Motormouth: SHUT UP ANd i hate spwlwing

Motormouth: like me my rwiting is a mess

Prettyyyyy: But it's hard to under stand you

IceIceZaney: Cole, if you scream any louder, you'll wake my father and ruin my surprise breakfast.

DadFriend: skdhdgejeiejsgjshshelwf

Motormouth: wow what a gay

Prettyyyyy: ?????

DadFriend: I will personally remove every freckle from your face and yeet them into the f-ing sun

IceIceZaney: I thought we said stop swearing. Kai's here and I'd rather not be one of the people held responsible for teaching him foul words.

Prettyyyyy: I swear sometimes, but only when Nya isn't around

Prettyyyyy: Usually I say xití because that's the absolute worst I can allow myself

Motormouth: KAI

DadFriend: so he isn't as pure as I first thought

DadFriend: now I'm hungry brb

Prettyyyyy: What? It's not that bad

Prettyyyyy: I think it means hell if I'm translating right

Prettyyyyy: Why did Cole call me pure?

IceIceZaney: Best way I can explain it is being "clean" of swearing or observing inappropriate content.

Prettyyyyy: What's inappropriate content?

IceIceZaney: ...

IceIceZaney: Jay?

Motormouth: WHY ME

Motormouth: I DON'T WANNA TELL HIN

Prettyyyyy: How do I send pictures?

(By now, Cole returned with a bag of chocolate chips and laughed at what had happened to the group chat in the short time he left.)

Prettyyyyy: Wait I got it!

Prettyyyyy: [PICTURE]

Motormouth: SO???? CUTE I THINK I MIGHT DIE????

IceIceZaney: Did you make that flower crown yourself?

Prettyyyyy: Yep!

DadFriend: Jay found dead in jamanakai village for the third time this year? more likely than you think

Prettyyyyy: ?????

IceIceZaney: It's another joke, don't worry.

Motormouth: can we go to one of thsoe messagign aops where we van add peolle whenever we want and change out usermames cauze i like thsoe thjgns

Motormouth: all u cool with thaht

DadFriend: yep

IceIceZaney: Of course.

Prettyyyyy: Okay!!

(Jay told Kai to download one of the apps and began to set up the group chat. Since he was in full control at that moment, he chose their names- Cole was ourrockboy, Zane was probablyarobot?, and Kai was NOTPUREBETRAYAL!!! He thought they were funny. He was PowersourcE)

ourrockboy: Jay I'm going to slap you

PowersourcE: :D

ourrockboy has changed their name to Stronk(TM)

probablyarobot? has changed their name to TheSaneOne

NOTPUREBETRAYAL!!!: How do I change my name? :(

NOTPUREBETRAYAL!!! has changed their name to knifeinthecountry

knifeinthecountry: I got it!

PowersourcE: >:O

Stronk(TM): where are you right now?

knifeinthecountry: Ignacia! :D

PowersourcE: i cant beleieve my own sfriends would betsray me kiek this

TheSaneOne: That sounds nice. Tell us what your visit was like when you return!

knifeinthecountry: Nya says hi! And so does our dog Yeye!

PowersourcE: YOU HAVE A DOG

PowersourcE: SHOW US

Stronk(TM): wow Jay, only feels better when dogs are involved

Stronk(TM): mood

knifeinthecountry: [PICTURE]

PowersourcE: AALSJSBDJEWHEHSJSHAJAKALWLW

Stronk(TM): WHAT THEBFCUKSS

TheSaneOne: KAI, THAT IS NOT A DOG, THAT IS A COYOTE!

knifeinthecountry: Yeye is the best boy!

PowersourcE has changed their name to STOPITNO

STOPITNO: GET AWY GT AWYA AAAAHAHAJSSIAKW

(Both Jay and Cole were screaming at this point. Lou yelled for his son to be quiet so he could hear the gramophone, and Jay's parents burst into his room to see if he was alright.)

TheSaneOne: KAI, GET AWAY FROM THE COYOTE NOW!

knifeinthecountry: Yeye likes to give kisses

STOPITNO: OHMYGOD YOU'RE TOO YOUNF TO DIEEEEEEE

Stronk(TM): AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH

knifeinthecountry: I'm visiting the elders so I can't talk now

knifeinthecountry: but I will be back!

(It wasn't until the next morning that Kai sent an update.)

knifeinthecountry: There were so many lanterns

knifeinthecountry: and food

STOPITNO: YES HESSTIL AKIVE

knifeinthecountry: I'm bringing back rice cakes for you guys!

knifeinthecountry: You'll love them so much!

Stronk(TM): not much of a fan of rice cakes, just cakes

TheSaneOne: I'd be glad to try one.

knifeinthecountry: Cole, you will eat a rice cake or else you will have offended the elders and bring a curse upon your family. You will eat and enjoy the knthxú cakes.

STOPITNO has changed their name to hahaloser

hahaloser: thats pretty intense mean, don't force him to loke osmething he doesn't

knifeinthecountry: I'm from Ignacia. We have different customs and beliefs. Rice cakes are sacred and are meaningful to my people

knifeinthecountry: Don't even think about denying me. I CAN curse you

knifeinthecountry: also, Cole made me use a very bad word

TheSaneOne: I'd love to learn more about Ignacia and its culture, Kai.

Stronk(TM): kiss-up

hahaloser: swesring is niw a neoedemic that colel started, hes to blame

Stronk(TM): don't worry, I think I'll like the rice cakes

knifeinthecountry: You mean love the rice cakes

Stronk(TM): I'M BEING THREATENED OVER FRICKING RICE CAKES

Stronk(TM) has changed their name to Iwasattacked

TheSaneOne: I am truly living up to my name now.

hahaloser: when are yu comjnf back thk

knifeinthecountry: Maybe a day or two before spring break ends

hahaloser: HEY U GUYS WANNA GO TO SCHOOL TOGETHER FOR OUT NEW SCEDULES NEXT WEDNESDAY

TheSaneOne: Of course.

Iwasattacked: I'm dowb

Iwasattacked: down*

knifeinthecountry: I'll be back by then so yeah

hahaloser: look at you alresf typin like a pro! im so lroud of you

knifeinthecountry: :D

Iwasattacked: that's your favorite face to make, isn't it?

knifeinthecountry: Yep!

knifeinthecountry: [PICTURE]

knifeinthecountry: Yeye is so cute

TheSaneOne: IS THAT YOUR BED?!

hahaloser: OH MY GOD STOP PUTTIH YOURSELF IN DNAGE

Iwasattacked: KAI THAT IS A WILD ANIMAK STOP IT AND GET AWYA FROM IT

Iwasattacked: ANIMAL* AWAY*

knifeinthecountry: He sleep. He's tired from yesterday. The kids would not leave him alone and kept trying to pet him. He got scared and ran back here. He loves my bed. Sparky likes Nya's bed

hahaloser: afraid to ask ht whos sparky

knifeinthecountry: Nya's cat. She was a stray.

Iwasattacked: was it a panther?

TheSaneOne: Oh god.

knifeinthecountry: No, a tabby

Iwasattacked: oh good okay

knifeinthecountry: y'all are insane

Chapter Text

Zane was the first to arrive, which was not a surprise since he was known to be a punctual, early bird type of person. He patiently waited for his other friends at the front entrance of their school.

Cole showed up about fifteen minutes later. Then Jay several minutes after, dashing across the parking lot.

"Sorry I'm late! Oh, Kai's not here yet?" the freckled brunet pouted. Cole laughed. "Hey, shut up!" Jay stomped on Cole's foot as hard as he could.

"Ow! Why would you do that?!" Cole shouted, lifting his foot off the ground and desperately trying to stay balanced on the other. "If anyone should get cursed, it's you." Jay only stuck out his tongue.

"Speaking of curses... Hello, Kai!" Zane called out, waving at the rapidly approaching brunet, lugging a backpack. "How are you?"

"I'm great! Sorry I'm late, had to take Nya to her school," he explained, panting slightly. Cole gingerly put weight on his foot, raising an eyebrow.

"Elementary kids don't get schedule pick-up days until fifth grade," Cole said. Maybe things had changed last year?

"Well, about that. Nya's skipping fourth grade, so she's a fifth grader now," Kai beamed, slinging the backpack off his shoulders. "I have the rice cakes!" He handed several out and waited. He stared at his friends, who did nothing. He frowned. "Well, what are you waiting for? Eat one." Almost simultaneously, the three boys bit into one of the rice cakes. Zane's eyes widened and Cole and Jay gasped.

"These are amazing, Kai," Zane was the first to speak and compliment. "It's such a simple food yet it's unique."

"You're not gonna curse us though, right? Because I'd rather not have that right now," Jay mumbled with a full mouth. Cole punched him in the back gently.

"Gross," the noiret scolded. Kai giggled.

"Of course I wouldn't actually curse you guys. You're my friends. I love you all." Kai hopped on the balls of his feet. "I usually don't say this, but hurry up and finish eating your rice cakes so we can get our schedules already!" Even as he said this, Kai did not wait and ran for the school's entrance.

When the others finally finished and entered the building, the halls were already filled with chatting and exploring peers, the first-years being completely confused as to what they should do and where they should go. Since this was their second year of junior high, the three boys went upstairs to the second floor. Thankfully, Kai was already by the table set up to hand the students their schedules. He was laughing at something Skylor had said.

"Hey guys, took y'all long enough! Qu'liiy, qu'illy, I wanna see if we have any classes together. I have Home Ec. and history with Skylor," Kai said enthusiastically. He gasped. "By the way, y'all know Skylor, right?" The girl smiled awkwardly.

"Hey," she muttered. She pointed a finger at Zane. "Weren't you that kid that fell off the swing set and almost broke the fake leg in third grade?" Zane blushed, which was a rare sight. Cole snorted and Jay cackled while Kai raised an eyebrow.

"You said you showed Cole and Jay," the brunet questioned. Zane chuckled nervously.

"In a way, I did. It just wasn't planned the way I wanted to." Jay's laughter increased in volume and Cole wheezed loudly. Zane clapped his hands together. "Yes, I am that kid. We haven't spoken in quite some time, Skylor? How have you been doing lately?" The girl shrugged.

"Learning how to take care of dreads. I see Cole has the same mindset in never cutting them 'cause that's what I'm doing," she said confidently. Cole nodded.

"I'll probably wear a man bun pretty soon."

"You do that and I will never be friends with you again," Jay announced in a serious tone. He strutted forward and searched for his schedule. "Found it!" Zane and Cole proceeded to do the same and compared their classes and times.

Cole had history with Kai on Mondays and Thursdays, Jay and Zane had robotics on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Zane had Home Ec. with Cole on Fridays, and Kai and Jay were together in pre-algebra on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They had fewer classes together, but they understood why. The higher the grade level you were, the more diverse your schedule was.

Jay jumped up and down. "Hey, let's go see our classes! I wanna know which teacher we'll have!" he shouted, skipping down the crowded hallways, apologizing everytime he bumped into someone. Cole and Zane followed, the former shaking his head in fondness. Kai smiled at Skylor.

"Join us?" he invited her.

"Uh, sure. I guess, why not?" she said and followed the brunet.

Jay grunted as he struggled to look over the head that crowded the posters listing the students' names and their classes. Even on his toes, the freckled boy couldn't see.

"Need any help seeing?" Cole teased when he joined his friend. Jay stuck out his tongue and nodded. Cole fixed his posture. One of the advantages of being tall: never having to put any effort into looking over crowds of people his age. Pretty much everyone was shorter than Cole. "Uh, okay... Hey, Jay, Class 2-A! Me too!"

"Yes!" Jay cheered, pumping a fist into the air. Zane, who had joined them as well, looked over people's heads as well. So did Skylor. Kai tried, but he was not tall enough to see clearly. When Zane frowned, Jay poked him. "Hey, why the sad face?"

"I'm in Class 2-B... So is Kai," the blond informed his friends. Skylor stood up straighter.

"Huh, so am I. Sweet," the girl smiled, twirling a longer lock around her fingers.

The three couldn't believe it. Up until this point, Cole, Jay, and Zane had always been together. They always had the same teacher and class. Now, they were separated. At least the classes were next door to each other so they would at least have gym together.

"At least someone will be there to make sure I don't torment the teacher," Kai joked before winking at Zane, which left the others a little confused while Zane smiled and shook his head. Suddenly, Kai yelped when someone from behind him picked him up into an almost suffocating bear hug.

"Kai has same class with Karlof!" the boy screamed as he squeezed Kai tighter and lifted him off the ground. Skylor laughed to the point of having to hold her stomach.

"Karlof... put me... down," Kai wheezed, gasping when Karlof obeyed. He smiled as he regained himself. "Are you serious? That's amazing! How are you doing in reading?" Karlof shrugged, picking at the thick wool of his gloves. No one has ever seen him without the gloves on. Karlof hated his hands and kept them hidden at all times, but no one knew why.

"Karlof does okay in reading. Not good to graduate, not bad getting bad grade and make Karlof restart again. But we have fun in class together, like best of friends," Karlof exclaimed. Kai cheered along. "Where is locker? We neighbor?"

"I don't know. Let's go see!" Kai ran off with Karlof, leaving his friends behind. Skylor shrugged before departing as well. Jay cracked his knuckles nervously.

"So... guess we should do the same. Right?"

It only got worse from there. Instead of being neighbors, the trio's lockers were separated. Cole groaned. He just knew his grades were going to drop, he could feel it in his gut. Jay fidgeted to the point of accidentally banging his knee against the metal of his locker. He was in between two people that he didn't know that well, Neuro and Jacob. The former was more of a weirdo than him, some even calling him psychic or whatever. Jacob was cool though. He was funny and had a quirky fashion sense.

Like Jay, Jacob also knew what it was like to be bullied. He was blind and had dwarfism. However, he never let that get to him and would usually joke around.

"You'll be okay," Neuro suddenly spoke up while figuring out the combination of his lock. He opened it first try. "Let me guess, they changed your lock so you can open it on your own, Jacob?" The boy gasped, dramatically running his fingers through his afro.

"How'd you know? Are you cheating and looking at it?" Jacob questioned.

"No. Jay's blocking so I can't see the lock. It was a guess that I assume I'm correct about," Neuro responded calmly. His grey eyes looked the freckled boy on his right up and down before saying, "Just don't worry, life's not as bad as second grade when Lloyd was there." Jay grimaced.

"Yeah, okay. You're so weird sometimes. Are you a mind reader or something?" Neuro did not answer, only shutting his locker and left without a goodbye, schedule in hand. "Oh my gosh, I finally figured it out, Jacob." The other boy laughed.

"You're funny, Jay. Hey, what class do you have? I'm in 2-C."

"2-A. Maybe we can hang out during lunch or something?" Jacob shook his head and did his best to open his locker again. He was trying to figure out where the indents were.

"Nah, don't want to separate you from your friends. Besides, we can talk while we're at our lockers. Well, if I can memorize and visualize the hallways to and from here and my class," Jacob chuckled. "A-ha!" He finally got his locker open.

Jay smiled widely. He knew he already made a new friend. 

Chapter Text

Cole spun his pencil around his fingers. He had gone through the first week of school alright. It was still odd without Zane and Kai but they always joined together at lunch.

Jay shoved his desk against Cole's and opened his lunch bag, muttering about pudding cups. Zane walked through the doors and promptly joined the two.

"Yo, is Kai joining us?" Jay asked. Kai had not eaten lunch with them for the entire week. It was obvious that the freckled brunet was upset by this, but he wouldn't admit to it. Zane shrugged and pulled out a container from his box. It was a very hot dish if the condensation on the container was any indicator.

"What has he been doing then if he's not with us?" Cole wondered out loud, scribbling on his spare napkin. He needed to practice drawing hands and feet now. Zane grinned as he removed the lid of his container. Sweet and sour chicken. "Whoa, nice. You made that yourself?"

"Of course I did," Zane boasted slightly before going on to answer Cole's question. "What do you think he's been doing? Getting to know Karlof and Skylor more. I think he likes her a little," the blond added absentmindedly. He didn't notice the slight deflation of the brunet. Then Jay perked up.

Obviously, he would when Kai walked through the doors that Zane had entered in. "Kai, over here!" he called out a bit too enthusiastically. The taller brunet smiled and waved at someone behind him.

It was Skylor, following close behind. Cole's grip on his pencil tightened so much that he almost snapped it in half. Jay softly growled. Zane didn't notice a thing, simply enjoying his meal with a thermos of honey lemon tea.

"Sorry I haven't sat with y'all at all," Kai apologized, bowing his head slightly. Jay groaned inwardly. He couldn't stay upset when the other made that face.

Cole was a different story. "So, uh... Skylor's joining us?" he questioned hesitantly. He would rather not have another person invade his friend group; he just got used to Kai. The girl shrugged and thumbed the lid of her thermos.

"Probably just for today. I don't know you guys that well so might as well," she answered smoothly. Her face wrinkled at the sound of her voice. It wasn't obvious to the others but it was to her- it was getting deeper and Skylor didn't want that. She stared at Cole passively. "If you want me to go, I'll leave. I don't really care."

Cole opened his mouth, but it clicked shut when he saw the eyes. Kai was doing the puppy eyes. It was unintentional because he wasn't even looking at the noiret but he was still sad. It was obvious Kai didn't want Skylor to leave.

Grimacing to himself, Cole said in a stunted manner, "Nah, it's fine. You can sit with us." Skylor smirked.

"Cool."

They ate calmly as they all caught up with one another. Everything was going fine...

That is until something was thrown directly at Skylor's head. It was a balled up piece of paper. She looked down at it and picked it up. Carefully, she opened it up. Then she crushed it once more, her hands trembling. She leaned over to cover her face with her arms. She didn't want anyone to see the tears already welling up in her eyes.

"Skylor, what is it?" Kai whispered softly. He gently removed the paper from her hand and unfolded it. He glared at it as if the paper had offended him and his ancestors.

"What is it?" Zane asked and leaned closer to see. He frowned deeply.

There, written in bold red pen in block letters, were the words "FAG CROSSDRESSER".

The other two boys peeped over, careful to keep their distance from Kai. The brunet was breathing sharply and heavily through his nose, his nostrils flaring and whistling with each inhale and exhale. The four of them jumped when Kai slammed the paper on the desk he was using, stood up, grabbed his metal lunch box, and stomped over to the group of kids that were tittering among themselves.

"Wait, what's he doing?"

"Jay, sh."

Kai crossed his arms as he tapped his foot, waiting for the other students to take notice of him. The boy sitting closest to him feigned an innocent grin. "Yes, what is it?"

"You wrote that, didn't you?" Kai started, his eyes burning with ire. Some of the kids in the group laughed but that was the only sound in the room. Everyone else was silent and watching intently to see what was going to happen next. The boy's grin widened and became crueler.

"Yeah, so what? It's true, isn't it? That freak," he emphasized, jabbing a finger in Skylor's direction, "will never be a girl no matter how much it wants to be. I'm sure you understand since you do the exact same thing."

Some of the students watching hissed at the boy's response. They eyed Kai, his knuckles completely white from his grip on his lunch box.

"Yeah, well, know how I feel about that?" Kai asked, his voice somehow steady despite his shaky body. The boy leaned closer is fake interest. It was a terrible mistake.

Kai's arm pulled back and his lunch box holding hand crashed down against the boy's face. Many people jumped, a few took out their phones, and everyone else either screamed or cheered. No one moved to stop the brunet as he dropped his lunch box and pushed the boy out of his seat before getting on top of him and repeatedly punching him.

Snapping out of his shock, Zane was the first to respond. "Kai, stop it! I-I-I'm getting a teacher!" The blond ran out of the room and rushed into the teachers' lounge, yanking on the arms of the teachers for Classes 2-A and 2-B.

Cole was second, surging forward and trying to lift Kai off the boy he was ruthlessly pummeling and spitting at in his native tongue. The larger boy was certain most of what Kai was saying was not school appropriate.

Jay rushed into trying to calm everyone down, shouting over their screams.

Skylor grabbed the paper and folded it into halves, not knowing what to do.

When Zane returned with the teachers, they separated Kai from the boy, who was now bruised and bleeding. Kai was hissing and kicking but eventually relaxed and slumped in his teacher's arms.

"Put your phones away now!" the teacher for 2-A ordered. Instantly, everyone obeyed. She crossed her arms, her foot tapping aggressively. "Now, we would like an explanation as to what was happening just now. Anyone?" It was dead silent, the complete opposite from moments ago. Not even the group that had instigated the whole event spoke up.

"Um..." Skylor raised her hand before dropping it and approached the teacher. She held out the folded sheet of paper to her. "They... wrote that and threw it at me."

The teacher eyed the paper, then looked down at the boy sitting on the floor, using his shirt to stop his nose from bleeding any more. "He did? Who's 'they'?" she questioned. Nervously, Skylor pointed at the entire group. They all hung their heads in shame.

"And just what were you doing, Kai? I didn't expect this from you," the teacher from 2-B asked. He was shocked, to say in the least. The boy pouted and crossed his arms.

"I got mad," he answered tersely, the anger still evident in his voice.

"That can't be the only reason!" the male teacher said.

"Well, he did say that Skylor and Kai were the same, dressing up as girls so they could 'pretend that they are,'" Jay answered for the teacher, quoting the words that the boy more or less said so himself. The female teacher glared at the students.

"I am emailing all your parents tonight about this behavior. Yours as well," she snapped at the group and Kai.

"How are you going to do that?" the still fuming brunet retorted. Before she could shout, the male teacher intercepted the conversation.

"What do you mean, Kai?" he asked calmly.

"We don't have a computer, just a phone."

"Then I will call them tonight, alright?" the male teacher concluded before the woman could. Kai nodded subtly. He patted the young boy's shoulder and let him go. "Alright everyone, back to your classrooms and seats. Sadly, we may have to restrict certain lunchtime privileges for an undetermined amount of time. Don't groan!"

Zane smiled sadly at his friends before getting up from the desk and leaving. Skylor grabbed her lunch before rushing for the doors, not even giving some sort of goodbye. The students shifted the desks back to where they were. Kai tugged on his teacher's sleeve.

"Can I at least go to the bathroom?" the young boy asked quietly.

"Hurry back, you have ten minutes." Kai nodded and sped walked to the nearest bathroom. He slammed the door of the closest stall shut before collapsing into a sitting position and sobbed heavily. He was late to class.

Several of the students from the group were suspended, including the boy that was injured. He was told that another incident like the one the previous day would result in expulsion. Kai, fortunately, only had an ISS, an in-school suspension, that extended for an entire month. He had to attend lunch and after school detentions as well.

After two weeks, the students of Classes 2-A and 2-B could sit wherever they pleased. However, Skylor resumed eating lunch in her own class, at her own desk, but thankfully still wore what she felt made her a real girl (although she already was).

Once his ISS was over, his friends had noticed instantly and were disappointed to see that Kai no longer wore what he wanted, instead just a hoodie and jeans most days.

Chapter Text

“I think we should join after-school clubs,” Jay suddenly said during lunch. Cole jumped when the freckled boy spoke up. Then he added, “I miss Kai. Zane, where does he eat now?” Zane swallowed his mouthful of food before speaking.

“And why do you only now ask that?” the blond asked. He was happy to finally be able to eat lunch with his friends again. Although, it wasn't exactly the same without Kai. After his suspension, the brunet no longer sat with them and stayed in his class. It made sense to want to avoid those kids, but they usually left the classroom to eat lunch with other students. Zane told the other two that Kai often ate with Skylor, Karlof, and another kid named Ash.

“Wait, isn't Ash that dude who never talks?” Jay asked. He’d seen him in the hallways before, although barely. Ash was really tall, almost as tall as Cole, but was super skinny. Zane nodded.

“Yes. He’s non-vocal so he's can't talk at all. He knows sign language though, so I think he's teaching them, mostly Kai,” the blond explained.

“Oh, so that's why!” Cole shouted. “I always thought we had those lessons only for Harumi.”

“By the way, what happened to her? I just realized I haven't seen her since second grade,” Jay added. Zane shrugged.

“I know things, but I can't know it all,” he simply responded.

“You are a know-it-all. How dare you?”

“Jay, aren't you going to elaborate on the club thing?” Cole came in between his two friends. He also didn't want to dwell on the Harumi thing. She was, for lack of better words, not a good person. She was probably worse than Lloyd.

“Oh yeah, I forgot!” Jay’s eyes lit up. “I just saw a bunch of posters advertising school clubs and I thought, you know, why not? So, should we sign up for some?” Cole shrugged.

“I'm down. It'll give me an excuse to stay away from home longer,” he said.

“Cole, you really need to talk about your home life more often with us,” Jay said.

“Nope, not gonna. It isn't your business.”

“I'd like to join a club,” Zane finally said.

“Awesome! Zane, can you tell Kai about it?” Jay asked. The blond nodded. The freckled brunet clapped his hands excitedly. “Ooh, I can't wait!”

The three boys stood in front of the bulletin boards, in shock of all the after-school activities they could participate in. Kai was the last to join them and he was also surprised.

“How many trees do you think were cut down for these posters?” Jay wondered out loud. Cole rolled his eyes and pointed at one sheet.

“Wrestling team sounds kind of nice,” he said.

“Have you seen the uniforms? Cole, you would never be able to wear one, you're too big of a guy,” Jay said, stealing a glance at Kai. He seemed okay, but he definitely gave off discomfort. “I like robotics a lot, but I do that with my dad all the time.”

“I think I’ll join the cooking club,” Zane finally spoke up, having already made up his mind as to what he wanted to do. “See anything that piques your interest, Kai?” The brunet hummed softly and skimmed through the posters.

“Maybe I’ll try out the… ooh, dance team! I’m definitely doing that!” Kai’s voice pitched in excitement, his eyes gaining that familiar shine his friends were used to.

“You can dance? Quite a surprise for someone who doesn't have a Royal Blacksmith as a parent,” Jay teased. Cole rolled his eyes.

“I find it stupid! And I always mess something up. Whatever. I think I’ll see how I like art club,” the tall boy said, gently shoving Jay to the side with his shoulder. “And at least I made up my mind. What about you, Motormouth?”

“Um,” Jay stuttered before one poster caught his eye. “Ooh, maybe I can try out for track! I'm a pretty fast runner if I do say so myself,” he added. Kai clapped softly. (Jay won't be the first to admit that his face got very warm at that very moment.)

“Pretty sure track means hurdles,” Cole suddenly said, leaning closer to read the track poster.

“So?”

“If you don't remember, you used to scream whenever you got close to a hurdle and never successfully jumped over one to this day,” Zane told them. Kai snorted but still tried to cover his mouth in an attempt to hold back his laughter. Jay’s face became even warmer, turning him into a tomato.

“I was eight!” he shouted. He huffed and crossed his arms when his friends continued to laugh. “Whatever, I’ll show you all how to jump some stupid hurdles. Just watch me win those meets.”

“Yeah, sure, and I'll put my best works on display for the school to make fun of,” Cole joked. He jumped when Jay suddenly- and somehow- pulled him down to his level by his shirt.

“Alright, here's a bet. If I come in second place at a track meet- doesn't matter which one- you have to ask the headmaster for permission to put your art up in your own display,” the boy dared, his blue eye sparkling and his brown one swimming with excitement. Cole grinned and stood back up.

“You're oddly confident. But why second place?” the noiret asked.

“It's track. Griffin Turner exists, remember?” Jay answered him. Cole hissed through his teeth. Kai cupped his hand over his mouth.

“Who's that?” he whispered to Zane.

“Griffin Turner is the fastest runner in all of Ninjago. That's not even an exaggeration; he's been in track since we were little kids. He's beaten everyone, even seniors,” Zane told him. “Just getting in second place when you race against him is spectacular.”

“Oh, cool.”

After class ended the next day, the four boys parted ways to their new after-school activities.

Cole shuffled from one foot to the other before finally pushing the door open and entered the main art room.

The room was truly colorful, with murals covering over half of the walls and clay statues standing proud around the room and on counters.

“Hey there! How are ya?” a young man with hair tied back in a ponytail greeted.

“Um, good,” Cole answered, just a little hesitant.

“I don't have you as a student or else I would have recognized you. I'm Mr. Skalidor, but just call me Skalidor. What's your name?” the teacher asked.

“I'm Cole. Skalidor is a badass name.” Cole gasped and covered his mouth. “Sorry, I shouldn't have said that.” Skalidor only waved his hand in the air.

“I don't have many rules. Not swearing is not one of those rules. Just don't use the really strong words and we'll be good. It's very nice to meet you, Cole. Make yourself at home, do whatever you please.” Skalidor stood up and grabbed a box of chalk, walking up to a clean blackboard.

Cole looked around. The first person he noticed was Tox. She was spray-painting some sort of graffiti on the farthest wall away from the noiret. Her head was bobbing violently; Cole noticed her lime headphones. He also saw Karlof using scraps of metal, paying no attention to anyone in the room. He somehow still had on his gloves. There were more people, Cole just didn't recognize them. Sitting down at the nearest empty table, Cole set his backpack on the floor and pulled out a sketchbook. He looked around, hoping no one would pay him any attention, and opened it.

“Hello, my name is Zane. I look forward to learning new cooking skills and am pleased to be surrounded by such lovely people,” the blond introduced himself. He smiled at everyone in the kitchen.

“Alright, now that we know our new member, who has a suggestion for what we could make today?” the club’s leader, Len, asked. A lithe hand went up. “Ash?”

Ash’s moved quickly while he mouthed out “Steamed vegetables and barbecue ribs”.

“That a good idea to everyone?” The small group of students all nodded their heads. “Alright everyone, wash your hands and get to your stations. Zane, you'll be next to Pixal and Skylor.” The boy felt someone nudge him on the arm. He grinned at Skylor. They both took their places at the island.

“You know, Pixal? I never would have thought that you would have wanted to learn how to cook,” Zane whispered to the girl beside him.

“Might as well, just in case Mr. Borg’s condition worsens,” she told the blond. Pixal was a foster child but was possibly going to be adopted soon by possibly the greatest architect and inventor in Ninjago City. Still, even though he had told her to do so, Pixal still struggled with calling Cyrus Borg her father.

“Y’know, even though my dad is like this emperor in the food chain of popular restaurants, I get sick of noodles a lot of the times,” Skylor said, chuckling as she washed the vegetables in the sink behind her. Zane laughed through his nose. “Alright, robot dude. Better get to work. Cut these up. Pix, help him out.”

“I will. Just don't call me a robot.”

“You act like one.” Zane stuck out his tongue and laughed.

Jay gulped as he watched Griffin Turner finish yet another lap around the track. He shuddered before looking back down at the form on his lap. Did he have a current physical?

What's a physical?

“Need any help?” the gym teacher asked, briefly sitting down beside Jay. He scratched the back of his neck before responding.

“Uh, what even is a physical, ma’am?” the boy asked quickly.

“Oh, that's just like a normal doctor's visit to make sure you're healthy and all that. Visit the doctor recently?” Jay nodded. The teacher clapped her hands. “Good. Just ask your parents for a copy of your physical and hand it to me as soon as possible. Just finish that up and you can keep watching the others for now.”

“Um, another question?” Jay reached out before she could leave. “Has anyone ever actually, you know… beaten Griffin Turner? Like, they're in first place and not him.”

“That hasn't happened in years, little man. All I can say is to believe in yourself. G’s fast, but his ego is almost enough to trip him up. Hey, P-Man! If you throw that hurdle again, I’m gonna throw a shot put at you!” the gym teacher ran off to stop the boy from throwing the equipment around.

Jay sighed. He's probably already lost the bet. At least he had a chance at a possible spot in second.

Kai slowly placed his backpack on the floor, as if the slightest noise would interrupt the choreography or the music. He watched as it appeared like Chamille was the one in the lead, Shade and a girl with red hair following her lead. There were several others watching as if learning the dance from the three at the center. The music was loud, pulsing and making Kai’s bones rattle from his feet up.

He loved it.

“Hey,” he tapped the shoulder of a guy with blond hair that was to his shoulders. The guy smiled and, in all honesty, Kai felt just a little happier in his gaze. “I wanna join the dance team. Who should I talk to?”

The boy pointed to Chamille. “Ya talk to her. You're Kai, right? I'm Lar. I remember seeing you wearing that dress last year. I think it was the one that reminded me of a hula hoop when you spun.” Suddenly, Kai wanted Lar to shut up. “You looked really cute. How come you aren't doing that anymore?”

Okay, he and his pretty face can keep talking.

“Uh, heh. Thanks. When are they going to finish?” the brunet asked, gesturing to the dance. The music would keep fading into fake endings. Lar pulled out his phone.

“About a minute, probably ninety seconds. You can sit with me. Let me show you who the heck everyone is.” Lar told Kai everyone's name. “You know Jacob, right? Short dude, groovy sense of style?” He snickered at his own joke and even got a soft chuckle out of Kai. “Yeah, he's over there playing that sitar that's, like, a foot bigger than he is. But he doesn't care. He may be blind but he likes to show off.”

“Who's that with him?” Kai asked, pointing to a girl whose hair was tied up in a bun but still fell on her face as she moved. Her maroon hair had a blue streak running through it. She twirled and spun in time with Jacob. She kept landing and spinning on her toes. Lar smacked his forehead.

“Damn, she's transferring here probably next week, but she's the one person whose name I don't know. But I guess no one does; she doesn't talk to anyone, just comes here to dance and leaves right after after-school stuff is over. Oh, dude, song's over. Go ask Chamille. Ignore her bitchiness, though and don't be offended. She's always like that,” Lar told Kai. The brunet nodded.

Kai approached the girl as she pushed her purple hair out of her face. “Oh, hey. I know your face. Whaddaya want?” Chamille asked before taking a sip from her water bottle.

“Can I join the dance team? It looks fun,” Kai simply responded. Chamille scoffed before setting down her bottle.

“It's fun, you say? Trust me, after two days, it's anything but that. This is not a club, this is a team. We create our own choreographies. We select our best for competitions. If we're lucky, the school lets us perform at the occasional pep rally. So believe me, you want to be here, you gotta be committed. No backing out like a coward or-” Chamille was interrupted by the door opening. Tox brought her foot down and walked in.

“What up? Hey Chami,” the girl said with a grin, hugging Chamille with one arm.

“Are you serious? I was interrogating this dude,” Chamille complained, gently nudging her elbow into Tox’s gut. The girl scratched at a spot on her face and snorted. “Shouldn't you be at art, anyway?”

“I wanted snacks and decided to stop by. You want anything? Shade?” she asked Chamille and the sullen boy. Shade only grunted in response.

“No thanks,” Chamille said in a nicer manner than the boy.

“‘Kay. Oh yeah, don't give Kai a hard time. I've seen him dance in the hallways when there was no one around. It's hilarious because the teachers don't even notice. He's pretty good,” Tox said before she left. Kai smiled shyly; although it was nice for someone to vouch for him, it was a little embarrassing because he didn't think anyone could actually see him through the small windows on the doors that were higher than he was tall.

Before anyone could say anything else, Tox’s head poked back into the room. “Actually, screw it. I'm staying to watch. I finished my graffiti. Skalidor ain't gonna mind me leaving. I need my worms though!” she shrieked before rushing back out. Chamille snickered.

“Okay, maybe I'll be easy on you for now. But trust me, once you start tomorrow, you have to be one hundred percent in or one hundred percent out. Got it?” Kai nodded vigorously.

“I got my fucking worms!” Tox screamed. Someone threw their shoe at her. “Hey!”

“Stop swearing and shouting all the time,” Shade barked at her. Tox only stuck out her tongue. Kai walked back to Lar.

“Wait, what did she say?” he whispered. Lar raised an eyebrow.

“What do you mean? You're not supposed to swear, or at least not loud enough for every teacher in the school to hear you.” The brunet’s face was still blank. “Do you know any swear words, like you know, in this language?” After a moment, Kai shook his head.

“Not really.” Lar rubbed his chin before bringing Kai closer to him with an arm around his shoulders.

“Maybe it's time I teach you a little bit about swear words, man.”

The moment the bell rang, teachers told students to clean up after themselves. In the dance room, the music was shut off and instruments were put away. The mystery girl, who had changed her shoes, clipped on a helmet and carried a skateboard against her hip before practically running down the halls to escape the school.

The moment she turned the corner on the left, Cole came by from the opposite direction and headed towards the studio. He waited by the door, hoping it wouldn't be too long.

On the other side of the school, Zane had already wiped down his station and had everything packed in his backpack. He left for the track course outside. He waved goodbye at Skylor and Pixal.

Jay was under the bleachers, hoping to avoid the sun for as long as he could. His skin burned too easily and always seemed to get more freckles because of that. He frantically waved Zane over.

“So, I'm gonna have to try out after I bring a copy of my current physical, but I think I'll be good. How'd your thing go?” the brunet asked, jogging back towards the school to find their two other friends.

“It was quite fun. I like working with other people but I do hope we get to make our own food by ourselves soon,” the blond replied, following his shorter friend.

“So, where are the others, Zane?”

“Knowing Cole, he would try to leave as soon as he can. They're either at the studio or on their way out.” They thought for a moment.

“Studio,” Jay said confidently before making his way for said room.

“What makes you so sure?”

“I think I almost got Kai figured out after a little over a year of friendship,” the freckled boy boasted with a wide grin.

And pining. But Zane didn't say that out loud.

Sure enough, they saw Cole standing by the doorway. The tall boy shrugged his broad shoulders, implying that he wasn't sure when Kai was gonna come out. However, it didn't take long for the door to open. Students streamed out, Kai, Jacob, and Lar being the last people except for Chamille. She was responsible for locking up the studio, a task she took very seriously.

“You good, dude? Need your cane or anything?” Lar asked, holding the object out for Jacob. The boy took it.

“Thanks, Lar. Hear you all tomorrow!” Jacob joked. Jay cackled. “He gets it!” Lar shook his head and smiled. He held up a hand as a goodbye.

“Later, Kai. Don't get lazy,” he advised simply before he left. The brunet nodded happily. Cole snorted.

“Already leaving us, Kai? Not cool,” the noiret teased. Kai grunted and tried to punch the other's arm as hard as he could. Cole barely flinched.

“No way. I'm never gonna leave you guys. But it is nice to make new friends. Also, did you not feel that? Didn't it hurt?” Kai asked, holding up his fist. Cole shook his head, ignoring Jay’s soft “ What ”.

“I felt it, just didn't hurt.” Kai’s eyes bugged out of his head.

“Holy shit.” Jay screamed. All four of them could hear Chamille cackle from inside the room.

“Who taught you to swear? ” The boy screeched before Zane covered his mouth with his hand.

“Are you guys leaving, because you're all blocking the door.” The four boys muttered an apology to Chamille as she locked the door and walked away.

“Lar told me a few words,” Kai answered honestly. Jay huffed through his nose.

“I will fight him! I will do it! I’ll fight him!” Jay exclaimed after pushing Zane’s hand away from his mouth. Thankfully, his big mouth didn't add, How could he ruin this pure boy?! That would have been embarrassing.

“Jay, you are the most aggressive pacifist I have ever met,” Cole stated. Zane raised his hand.

“What about me? I'm a pacifist.”

“You’re the nicest pacifist ever,” Cole said. The smaller brunet gasped.

“I'm nice!”

“Jay, it doesn't matter. I know a lot of swear words, just not in this language,” Kai interrupted. “Besides, Cole swears. I've heard him say several things, but I didn't know until now.” Although he smiled at the shorter boy, Jay still crossed his arm and tried to kick Cole’s leg.

“What? Why me?”

“I sort of blame you.”

“He was gonna find out eventually! Right, Kai?” The brunet nodded firmly. “Okay, can we leave now? I don't want to stay in school anymore.”

“And you guys call me the mom friend,” Zane spoke up.

“That's because you never swear, Zane. You only use the mom swears.”

“Touché.”

Chapter Text

Nya groaned, laying her head on her history textbook. She was bored with homework and wanted to play with her brother, but he was busy. Værmisha said so. He was on a dance team and apparently it was serious.

“Mommy, can I watch Kai practice?” Nya asked. Maya was reading a book and Ray was still at work. They could both feel the music thrumming from Kai’s room through the walls.

“As long as you don't bother him and finish your homework later,” Maya said.

“Oh, no. I'm doing next week's homework,” Nya informed. Maya dropped her book on her lap.

“Then what are you doing? Get out of this house and do something. If you have to, drag your brother out of his room. I don't want you two isolating yourselves in this home like this,” Maya ordered. Nya nodded and got out of her seat. “And Nya?”

“Yes, Mommy?” the little girl asked, turning to face her mother.

“Make sure your brother is okay. Even fine is good enough,” Maya said, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. Nya raised an eyebrow and was about to voice her question when her mother beat her to it. “One can be fine, but that doesn't mean you're okay.”

“Okay.” Nya walked up the stairs and headed towards her brother's room. The music got even louder; it was fantastic that the stereo and speakers that Techāito and Kai bought together at the retail store were so powerful. One of the kids in her class said that retail stores were the worst because everything was crappy.

They apparently lied. Nya hated liars.

Knowing Kai wouldn't hear her knocks, Nya simply opened the door. Now she no longer felt the bass, she could hear the singing and the rhythm. It sounded cool.

And it was definitely a song to dance to if her brother didn't even notice her watching. Kai’s eyes were shut, his arms moving as if the wind controlled them, yet he told what the wind should do. His steps were light and he was moving quicker than Nya could keep up with. So that was why the two of them couldn't hear Kai dance- his footsteps and landings were too light for the floorboards to actually creak. He danced like the flame of a candle.

And that was how Nya was able to sneak past her brother and unplugged his phone and paused the song. Kai jerked and whirled around, glaring at his sister.

“Nya! Why did you do that?!” he yelled. “I need to practice!”

“Are you done with your homework?” she simply asked.

“Uh, yes. But-”

“Mommy says we can't isolate ourselves. And you know how good you are at that.” Kai’s face burned and clenched his fists. “And Mommy wanted me to ask if you're okay.”

“I-I,” Kai stuttered, looking at his feet. He hated what his sister said about him being good at isolation. It's not like he tries to do it. And why does he have to try so hard to make friends? “I'm fine. So, where do you wanna go, pyunū ?” he asked his sister, quickly changing the subject. Nya grinned.

“Park!” she shouted and grabbed her brother's arm and tried to tug him out of his room, but he resisted. “Kai, are we going or not?!”

“I have to change my shirt!” he tried to explain. Nya groaned dramatically, throwing her head back.

“What's the big deal? I thought you loved that one!” The shirt resembled the kimonos many of the girls and women back in Ignacia wore for their special days. It flowed and had flower designs on it. It was a gentle pink that always soothed her brother. “And you haven't worn it for so long! Let's just go already, ‘cause I'm not letting you wear that stupid hoodie so you can pass out from heatstroke!”

Sighing, Kai just gave in and let himself be pulled along.

“Mommy, we're going to the park!”

“If you think the two of you are going alone, you have another thing coming. And put on your shoes!” Maya ordered, shutting her book and going into the kitchen for water bottles. While her children tugged on their shoes, she watched Kai through the kitchen window. She smiled softly, hoping he could feel it somehow. “Alright, let's go. And Kai?”

The boy hummed, tugging the short sleeves of his shirt as far down as he could.

“You look great, don't worry.” It was subtle, but Maya still saw her son’s smile.

“Cole, I'm glad you're not a part of the wrestling team,” Jay said, jogging in place while they waited at the stop sign before crossing the street.

“Oh yeah? Why's that?” Cole asked, scrolling through his phone. He surprisingly enjoyed art club. He felt a lot more relaxed. It was obvious the others liked their things as well. He was currently searching for some sort of inspiration.

“Apparently, they made a rule that all wrestlerers-”

“It's ‘wrestlers’, Jay,” Zane corrected.

“Whatever. But they made a rule that you would have to cut your hair and keep it-”

“Hell no!” Cole shouted. Jay sighed through his nose. Already, the second time interrupted. “No one is ever cutting my hair. I'll cut off circulation to their brain first.”

“That's murder, Cole,” Zane said. Jay sprinted across another street ahead of them. “Jay, look both ways before you cross the street!”

“No!”

“If you die, our bet becomes null and void.”

“Yo, what up, Jacob?” Jay said, greeting the shorter boy. Already, Jacob was opening his locker and getting to and from his class with ease.

“Eh, nothing much. Hey, there's supposed to be a new student coming today. She's been coming here after school for a while, but no one knows her name. She's even been in the studio and dancing along to my music. At least, that's what Lar told me,” Jacob explained.

“What class?” the freckled boy asked, trying to shove an extra textbook inside his locker. Why are they so skinny and the books so gigantic?!

“Uh, 2-C is almost full. So’s 2-B. Probably 2-A or 2-D.”

“Kinda weird that the class with the first letter of the alphabet has fewer students than the two classes after it, right?”

“Okay, good. It wasn't just me.”

“You both are so weird,” Neuro, only now arriving at school, said. “And she'll be in your class, Jay.”

“How do you know that?” Jay and Jacob asked at the same time.

“I have my ways.”

“You're creepy, that's what you are.”

Jay’s knee just wouldn't stop bouncing. He was obviously excited to see who the new girl was. Cole rolled his eyes at his friend. The brunet needed to learn how to chill, honestly.

“Alright everyone, in your seats!” their teacher ordered. Chairs screeched as the students ran for their desks. Their teacher groaned and rubbed her temple. “Now, I'm sure most of you have heard that we have a new student. So I want you all to be kind to her like you would to anyone else.” She waved at the student, gesturing for her to come into the classroom.

Cole gasped, his eyes widening.

“Thanks, Ms. Murphy. Um, hi. My name is… Seliel Bakar,” the girl said, tucking her blue streak behind her ear. “I'm from Lom but, uh, my dad and I recently moved to here so I… go here now. Yeah.” Seliel tightened her grip on her backpack loop and stared at her feet.

“Alright, well, your desk will be over by the window over there. Will you be able to see well?” Seliel nodded.

“Um, wait!” the new girl suddenly said before the teacher could send her to her desk, which was in the near back. “I don't… actually know my way around the school.”

The teacher's face crumpled as if she were trying her best to hold back a sigh. “Alright. Does anyone want to volunteer in being Seliel’s guide around the school?”

Instantly, Cole’s hand shot up. Jay stared at him, confused. Cole hated meeting new people.

“Thank you, Cole. But make it quick, okay?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Cole said, bowing slightly before practically running to Seliel’s side. “Let's go. I'll show you the second floor first.”

The two of them left the classroom just as Ms. Murphy began to lecture some students who had been too rambunctious the previous day. Once they turned the corner, Seliel smiled and turned to Cole.

“I was lying, you know.” Cole covered his mouth to hide his chuckle.

“Oh, I know. I can't believe you're here! When did you move?” he asked.

“Couple weeks ago. I was actually going to the after-school dance thing when I first came here. You know, trying to get a feel of things,” Seliel said with a shrug.

“Aw, man! I could have seen you sooner! I'm in art club now.” Seliel giggled, trying to imagine a guy like Cole painting or doing something really artsy.

“Yeah, as soon as the bell rings, I'm out. Don't stay for anything or anyone.”

“Still as antisocial as ever, I see. I hope you haven't punched any other people in the face. That's kind of our thing,” Cole joked, elbowing Seliel in the side. She gasped and slapped his arm.

“Shut up! You know I didn't mean that. You startled me.”

“We were four and all I said was hi.” Seliel playfully kicked the wall but still smiled. “So, still doing ballet, I'm assuming?”

“Hell yeah. Ain't never giving that up. And you aren't, like usual?”

“Hey, be quiet. I know how to waltz and slow dance, so at least I know something. Also, I still remember some of ballet.”

“You're as graceful as an ox, you can't say anything about being good at dance, especially ballet.” The two of them laughed.

“I never said I was good. I actually hate it!” Cole said, heading for the stairs.

“Aw, don't say that! Who knows, you knowing how to dance might swoon the right girl,” Seliel teased, flicking her hair over her shoulder. Cole pretended to gag, pointing his finger at the back of his throat. Seliel stepped on the back of his knee, not enough to make him fall, just so he could break his pace.

The two of them sat down on the stairs that lead to the third floor. “But seriously, is there somewhere in the school that I need to show you so you don't get lost?”

“Nah, I'll just follow you around. I'm actually really happy that you're here. I was scared of going to a new school full of new people that I'll never able to be friends with. So, thanks,” Seliel said.

“No problem. Although, I do have to tell you. I sit with my friends during lunch-”

“Whoa, you have friends? How did that happen?”

“Oh my god, I'm going to push you on the floor.”

“You wouldn't. You're too nice.”

“Shut up. Anyway, I sit with my friends so I hope you're chill with that. They're really nice. Zane is nice to everyone. Jay and Kai can sometimes be a bit too much to handle, but they're great people.” Seliel tugged on her hair before answering.

“I'll deal with them. Just as long as I don't have to talk to them that much. Okay?” Cole smirked.

“I'll keep Jay busy,” he said with a wink. Seliel snorted. “I like your hair though.”

“Thanks. It takes a lot of work to make it look this good.”

“Is this coming from the girl who used to never shower or take a bath?”

“That was childhood, when you rarely sweated and being gross was stupidly normal!”

“Mm, you say that but you just hated getting clean.”

“Oh, would you look at the time  we should get back to class!” Seliel took off, practically running down the hall. Cole chuckled and followed her.

“Zane, Kai, I want you to meet Seliel. She's an old friend of mine,” Cole introduced the new girl.

“So that's why you raised your hand? Dude, how could you not tell me?!” Jay pouted. Seliel shuffled around on her feet. The tiny one was really loud.

“It's not that big of a deal. Besides, we were friends since four until she and her dad moved. He was the former mayor, right?” Cole asked. Seliel nodded quietly.

“Well, it's really nice to meet you. I hope you feel welcome here,” Zane said politely. Kai tried to smile but ended up grunting. “What's wrong?”

“Braces,” the brunet said, pointing at the metal in his mouth. “Got them tightened yesterday and this is the first time in a while since it's actually hurt.”

“I don't think I want braces,” Jay whined, covering his mouth with his hands. “Okay, wait! So I was eavesdropping on my parents yesterday and-”

“Why do you do that?” Cole interrupted.

“I'm a snoop. Anyway, I heard them say that they want to do a meet and greet on my birthday! I think it's for someone famous because they'd tell otherwise.”

“Or maybe they wanted it to be a surprise for your birthday,” Zane suggested. Jay scrunched his nose.

“That sounds fake but sure.”

Cole grinned and looked over at Seliel through the corner of his eye. She was still standing and watching the others talk. She hasn't even said a word yet. Gently, he nudged his foot against Seliel’s leg.

You okay? Cole mouthed. Seliel bit her lip before suddenly turning on her heel and leaving the classroom, cutting the conversation among the three other boys short.

“Did we say something wrong?” Kai whispered. Jay picked at a scab on his elbow nervously.

“No, it's fine. But is it cool if I go eat lunch with Seliel?” Cole asked, already standing up.

“Of course,” Zane said. Cole scrambled to gather his stuff before rushing out of the classroom and heading for the first place he thought of that would surely have no people- the rooftop.

Technically, first and second years were not allowed on the roof with the third years (they could in high school), but they still did it all the time. Seliel would know about it; she always seemed to know where to go to be alone, always disappearing like a phantom.

Cole apologized as he bumped into several people while running up the stairs. Pushing the doors open to the roof, he wasn't surprised to see the few people on the roof sitting in whatever shade was there. It was incredibly hot and it wasn't even summer yet.

But his instincts were right. Seliel had tucked herself in a corner closest to the door. Cole joined her, sitting on the ground.

“Hey,” he simply said. He tapped his index fingers against his knee like a drum.

“I'm sorry,” Seliel finally said. She threaded her fingers in her hair and tugged sharply, clearly upset. “I didn't mean to run off like that. I was just… you know…”

“Overwhelmed?” Cole guessed. Seliel nodded and rested her head against his shoulder. “It's not your fault. And it wasn't the others’ fault either. I guess we can figure something out. Maybe Jay is not yet old enough to learn the trick of shutting up when he needs to.” Seliel snorted, her face scrunched from laughter.

“Are you calling the tiny one a dog?”

“Honestly, Jay’s probably a Chihuahua, especially since he is small,” Cole clarified.

“Everyone is small compared to you, you giant,” Seliel teased. “But thanks, dude. I just… I hate not being able to handle these things better, like, or at all. I like being alone, but that doesn't mean I don't want to make friends.”

“I know. You never stopped following me around whenever other kids wanted to play a game with me when we were little. It was pretty funny,” Cole chuckled. Seliel punched him gently on the arm. “That doesn't hurt.”

“I figured, you big lug. You're just lucky I didn't step on your toes.”

“You do that, I'll never be your friend again.”

“Why are you so protective of your toes?!”

“They're small and sensitive. My feet may be big, but that don't mean people can step on my feet!” Cole shouted. Seliel cackled and lifted herself up.

“Damn, okay. I guess that's good enough. Oh, dude, Cole!” Seliel turned herself around to face the boy. “Remember how I always made you hold my hand whenever we went anywhere?”

“You made me go with you to the bathroom every time. I kept getting in trouble!”

“Yeah yeah, whatever. But do you remember what adults used to say?”

“You mean the adults who always made a big deal of a boy and girl holding hands? Did they seriously think two four-year-olds would know what PDA means, much less know what it means to be boyfriend and girlfriend?”

“Exactly! Oh my god, I hated them so much. Besides, how could we be boyfriend and girlfriend? Especially since…” Seliel stopped there, a wide smile on her face. Cole raised a bushy eyebrow.

“Since what?” he asked.

“You know. I don't have to say it, right? There's people here.”

“But I don't know what you're talking about.”

“But I thought…” Seliel’s forehead creased with confusion. “Okay, um. I guess it doesn't matter right now.”

“Wait, what do you mean? I don't like not knowing things!”

“Dude, it doesn't matter! But whatever, I'm going to try again. Your friends are cool. I just… need to adjust, I guess,” Seliel shrugged. Cole patted her shoulder and smiled.

“Take your time. I'm going to eat up here with you, ‘kay?”

“Thanks, Cole. I-I mean it,” Seliel muttered. Then she grinned widely. “Yo, what the hell is up with your guys? They're weird.”

“Okay, you know what? You want tea? I'll give you tea.” Cole rubbed his hands together, grinning widely.

Chapter Text

Jay did his best to sit on the stone step cross-legged, waiting for his friends to show up at the park. They sure were taking their time to meet him after his birthday.

He screeched when he felt wood chips hit his neck and fall down his shirt. He turned around too quickly and almost fell. Cole laughed and sat down beside him.

"I gotcha, dude!" Cole cackled while his friend pouted. "Hey, happy birthday. Sorry I didn't get much." He held out a small box, which Jay can only presume to be a birthday gift. "I'm sure Kai and Zane will be here soon."

"Hope so. Thanks, man,"  Jay beamed. "Uh, can I open it now?" Cole nodded. Not wanting to make a mess, Jay tried to pick at the bits of tape. "Dang it," he grunted.

"You have got to stop biting your nails, stupid," Cole scolded, taking the present away. He peeled the tape away himself.

"Well, I'm sorry I'm just a ball of chaos," Jay tried to growl. Cole only rolled his eyes. Jay unwrapped the gift and grinned. "Are you serious?" He held up a small statue of an octopus holding a teacup in his palm. "I don't know if I should laugh or be annoyed."

"It's a valid gift from Goodwill," Cole said solemnly, holding his hand over his heart. "Do you like it though? I just thought it was cute and repainted it."

"Yeah, I really like it. I'll treasure it forever and mourn it when I lose it," Jay said.

"Then clean your room!"

"I don't think I've ever seen Jay's room but I agree," the two of them heard Kai say behind them. Zane was standing next to him and smiled, nodding in agreement. He has seen Jay's room and almost cleaned it up himself more than once. Both of them were holding gifts.

"You're here!" Jay shouted and almost fell again. "Come, join the prince and his fool."

"Bold of you to assume you would ever be in a line of royalty," Cole muttered. Zane giggled and sat beside Jay. Kai took his place next to Cole and already tried to hand over his gift.

"Happy birthday, Jaybird. I hope you like it," Kai said, shining that smile that always made Jay feel mushy and weird. Then he realized that Kai gave him a nickname.

Oh geez.

"Thanks, Kai," Jay stuttered, taking the bag from his hand. He pulled out a bracelet with five chains connected to five separate rings. "Oh, wow. I… I don't know what to say. Uh, thanks a- a lot, Kai."

"You're welcome. I had some help from my parents but I made them. I'm glad you like them," Kai said softly as if he was embarrassed. Jay wanted to feel every individual chain just to recognize Kai's work. He tried to figure out how to put on the bracelet. "Let me help. Hold it so the chains hang completely down and match which finger you're putting them on."

"Oh, right. Obviously," Jay chuckled nervously, trying to ignore the look Cole gave him from the corner of his eye. He clenched his left hand after finally being able to put on each ring. "This is so cool, dude."

"I believe it is my turn to give you the gift I have for you," Zane said very formally. Jay snorted and took the gift, neatly wrapped with a small bow on it (of course).

Jay pulled out a long orange scarf and laughed at the small stitching in one of the corners: For Jay Walker. From Zane Julien.

"I love it, Zane. Never would have gone for orange, but it's really pretty," Jay complimented. He would have put it on right then and there but he would rather not slowly get heatstroke. "Thanks, you guys. I appreciate it."

"So, you wanted to tell us something?" Cole asked, reminding Jay of why he had texted his friends frantically to meet him in the park ASAP.

"Oh yeah, right!" Jay shouted, gently putting away the scarf and stood up. "So, remember when I told you about the conversation I overheard between my parents?"

"Eavesdropped," Zane corrected. Jay stuck out his tongue.

"Anyway, yesterday my parents took me to a meet and greet and Cliff Gordon was there!" Jay already began to scream. Cole motioned for him to lower his voice. "Right, sorry. It was probably hard for them to do it and cost a lot of money, but I actually got to meet him! He signed my shirt and shoes and a graphic novel based on the Fritz Donnegan movies, all that good stuff!"

"Why didn't you tell us yesterday?" Cole asked, absentmindedly poking at his own arm.

"Because I forgot my phone in the car and it was dead anyway from not charging it overnight," Jay explained, ignoring the mumbled "Typical" from Cole. "Shut up. So I was getting my picture taken with Cliff Gordon and when the photographer wanted us to say cheese or something- and I swear I wasn't focused on anything other than meeting Cliff Gordon so shut your cake mouth, Cole!- I ended shouting 'I'm bi!' in front of Cliff Gordon and my parents and the photographer!" Jay exhaled and took a deep breath. "So yeah, I just came out to my parents and my idol and now to you guys because I don't know how to think. And before you say anything, yes, I took my medicine before leaving and drank a lot of soda." Jay slapped his thighs and pressed his lips together. He watched Kai grin and cross his legs.

"I have no idea what you mean by 'bi'." Cole snorted and cackled loudly. Zane covered his mouth to smother a chuckle.

"Do you want to explain?" the blond asked, attempting to hold it all together.

"Yeah. Uh, basically, I am pretty positive that I like boys and girls," Jay said simply. No need to go into detail.

"Oh, okay!" Kai exclaimed. Suddenly, his face contorted into a more solemn expression. "Are you happy? Y'know, with that conclusion?"

"Yeah, actually. It's kind of nice to have some sort of name to it," Jay said, beaming. Kai gave him a soft smile that would have felt so nice but… his eyes looked sad.

"Hey, wanna go to the pit?" Cole asked, immediately distracting Jay.

"Yeah, obviously!" he screamed.

"Sure," Zane added in.

"Wait, what pit?" Kai asked. Confused, he took the two hands offered to him, Jay's and Cole's.

"We'll show you," Cole said almost mysteriously. The two of them led the way to an empty field with a shallow pit near the center. It was filled with rocks, dirt, and sand.

"It's nice to come here because it can be really quiet and relaxing. Also, Cole loves collecting rocks," Jay said. Cole lightly scratched at his neck.

"Uwæ," Kai mumbled. He gently squeezed the hands he held before letting go and running straight for the pit. Cole laughed and followed, Jay and Zane close behind.

It was just simple fun, Kai occasionally peeking over the edge to reach out to a squirrel but always failing to pet it and Cole finding new rocks to take home. Jay and Zane were comparing their doodles in the sand when Cole whimpered.

"Dude, what's wrong?" Jay asked, immediately by his best friend's side. Cole rubbed his arm.

"Nothing, it's just stiff. My muscles, I guess," he said with a shrug.

"I suggest you rest, then. And don't give some sort of excuse. I'll help with your rock collecting, okay? Just take a break for now," Zane said firmly. Cole sighed and climbed up to the edge and sat down.

The rest of that afternoon went back to normal, more or less. Then Kai had to leave before it got too dark and the others decided to do the same. Cole was happy with the new rocks he was going to add to his collection but still irked that Zane insisted on carrying them all.

"Your arm good now?" Jay asked the following day, taking a walk around the block with Cole.

"Yeah, but it's no big deal," Cole shrugged. Instantly, Jay narrowed his eyes.

"Liar. Whenever you say that, it's always worse than what you say it actually is. How long has your arm hurt?" Jay asked, his tone shifting from sharp to gentle as he spoke.

"Uh, a couple weeks now. I think it's just from exercising too much since my whole body sore," Cole thought out loud.

"Then Zane is right, as always. You should take a break," Jay repeated the advice.

"Yeah, whatever." They walked in silence, eventually turning in the direction of Jay's favorite comic book store and a small ice cream parlor. "Hey, got money on you?"

"Pocket change, mostly," Jay said. "I think I can buy a small cup. You?" Smugly, Cole pulled out a few bills. "Whatever, man! Hey, is that Kai?"

Coming out of the parlor, Kai was licking the melting ice cream off his wrist. Jay's eyes lit up. "Let's go say hi!" Cole grabbed his shoulder and held him back. "Hey, what's wrong with you?"

"Just look," Cole said tersely. Jay rolled his eyes but did anyway. His eyes widen as he watched Kai hold open the door and hold hands with Skylor, who was also struggling to eat her melting popsicle in the heat. She was clearly laughing as they walked off in the opposite direction of the two boys.

"Oh," Jay's voice cracked. Cole squeezed the smaller boy's shoulder in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. "Let's just go to the store and look at bad comics." Cole pursed his lips.

"Sorry, dude."

"It's fine, really. Kai's probably happy anyway, I won't ruin that for him," Jay said softly before crossing the street without using a crosswalk and not properly looking both ways. Normally, Cole would have made the jaywalking joke, but it was not the right time.

Chapter Text

“Alright class, I would like you all to meet Harumi Arakawa,” the teacher, Miss Huang, said. She waved for the young girl to enter the classroom. She did so quietly, her backpack in hand. A small, pale child, almost frail. She set her backpack on the floor and pulled out a notebook. She flipped a few pages before turning it to face the class.

‘Hello. My name is Harumi.’ was written in large writing. She turned the page again. ‘I can’t hear because I’m deaf. My eyes are also not very good.’ One more flip. ‘It’s nice to meet you all.’ Harumi gave them a smile so sweet, it could have given them all five cavities.

“Alright then. Lloyd, are you willing to let Harumi sit next to you?” Miss Huang asked the small blond boy. He nodded slightly, ignoring the looks he was probably getting. He wasn’t exactly the nicest person but he wouldn’t be mean to someone just because they can’t hear. The teacher pointed at the empty desk beside Lloyd’s. “Lloyd, I want you to write down what I teach for Harumi.” The boy nodded quietly. Harumi picked up her backpack again and walked to the desk.  She took her seat and set her notebook on the desk. Lloyd poked her arm. Harumi’s eyes were a very clear blue and they seemed to shake a bit.

He hesitated before mouthing and saying “Hello” in sign language. Harumi smiled and signed back. She moved her notebook to be in between both of them.

‘Nice to meet you. Can we be friends?’ She clutched her hands together almost as if she was going to pray. Lloyd nodded. He pulled out a loose piece of paper from his desk, ready to write down what Miss Huang taught.

As he wrote, he couldn’t help but steal glances at Harumi. She was really pale and her hair was completely white, kinda like an old person. When the bell finally rang for lunch, Lloyd poked Harumi’s hand and gestured to the notebook. She handed it to him.

‘Not to be mean but why are you so white?’ he wrote and handed the notebook back. He really wasn't trying to be; his skin was super weird too. It was different colors. His mom said it was something that started with a V. Harumi held it a bit too close to her face to read it but she laughed. She wrote down her response quickly but her handwriting was much prettier than Lloyd’s.

‘I have albinism so I’m really pale and burn easily.’ She grinned as Lloyd read what she wrote.

“Oh okay. Um,” Lloyd paused and tried to act out eating. “Lunch?” Harumi squinted to watch his lips but she nodded.

Lloyd ran straight for the last swing before anyone else could take it. He was already at kicking when Harumi approached. She had just put her hair into two braids. She signed something before realizing that the boy wouldn’t understand.

“Uh, play?” she attempted to say in a weak voice. Lloyd dragged his heels into the dirt and nodded. Harumi grinned and quickly pressed her hand on Lloyd’s arm before running away. He laughed and ran right after her. He hid behind a tree before tagging her back, making his way to the jungle gym.

He climbed up onto the monkey bars to keep Harumi in his sight. She ran underneath the slides and didn't come back out. Slowly, Lloyd got down and went up to the highest point of the playground. Maybe he was shoving everyone else already up there but he didn't care. They left anyway.

"Harumi?" Lloyd shouted. He leaned out of where the pole was, the one where some kids like to get down on like firefighters. He screamed when he was pushed off the platform and fell to the ground, his hand hitting the pole. He heard the girl laughing from above him. He grunted and rubbed off the dirt and woodchips from his hands and clothes.

“You’re it!” Harumi shouted at him. Lloyd glared at her before walking away. He heard her make a noise before going down the pole and following him. She tapped his shoulder repeatedly.

Lloyd searched for a big stick and, when finding one, wrote in the dirt.

‘That wasn’t nice.’ Harumi stared at the words before holding her hands up and shrugging. Lloyd sighed and continued writing. ‘Pushing people off the playground is mean.’ Lloyd knew what mean is. He was a little mean, but he didn’t push people. His dad was mean sometimes but only to other people, not him or his mom.

Harumi squinted and frowned at him. She nodded anyway. Then the bell rang and her face morphed into a much more bubbly expression when she took notice of everyone else running back to the school. “Class?”

Lloyd nodded and took her hand, the two of them walking together back to class.