It's not secret that FropessionalWriter95's 'Befriending the Criminal' is one of my favourite bruiseshipping (and Ninjago in general) fanfics! To celebrate its finish, I decided to write a little something based on her take on the characters, taking part right where the story left off. If you haven't read Befriending the Criminal, I highly recommend reading it before reading this. I can guarantee it's worth it!

Thank you Peri for writing such a great fanfic. I hope you like this!


"So… Cole is staying so that I can watch a real life romcom?"

The young detective couldn't believe his eyes. The first thing he saw when he stepped into the living room, was Jay leaning against Cole's chest and reading comics with him. Cole wasn't really paying attention to what Jay was telling him. His, now boyfriend's, voice was making him travel elsewhere.

Lloyd had just returned from his family's home. Seeing how it was very late when he and his family finished dinner, he spent the night there. Detective or not, driving back to the house he shared with Jay at three in the morning was dangerous, even for him. Not to mention that he could barely keep his eyes open.

Besides, Lloyd was well aware that Jay would appreciate some time alone with Cole.

It was supposed to be one of the last times they'd be alone together, considering Cole would be moving out. The tables turned the very same day. Chief Garmadon informed Lloyd that Cole would be staying with them for just a bit longer. 'To get used on how to live in a proper house', he said.

Lloyd knew that was far from the truth.

Sure, Cole would usually be the one to sit back and watch as breakfast was being made in front of his eyes - if he had left his room by then, that was - but it wasn't as if he didn't know how to cook.

Another crucial thought.

Cole sucked at cooking more than he sucked at acting formaly at parties.

Whether he was good at it or not didn't matter anymore. Cole was staying and that was final. For how long though?

If Lloyd were honest with himself, he didn't really mind. He wouldn't exactly call Cole his friend - they didn't know each other all that well yet - but how he loved teasing his best friend about him and Cole.

"Ha, ha." Jay mocked and placed the comic down, sitting up. "Hilarious as always."

Instictly, the moment Jay got up, Cole moved his hand forward, as if he were trying to pull him back to his lap. "Don't get too stressed, Bluebell." he commented. "After all, if this really is a romcom, viewers would hate to see you like that."

"'Ha, ha' to you too!" Jay shot back at Cole. "This isn't a romcom, it's-"

"A real life love story." Lloyd finished his sentence and hanged his coat on the hanger. "Directed by Michael Bay, starring Gay Walker and-"

"Lloyd!"

Both Lloyd and Cole couldn't help but chuckle at Jay's reaction. He got flustered way too easily. He was the perfect target for teasing.

"What's for lunch?" the blond asked curiously.

Cole shrugged. "Don't ask me, I can't cook for sh- I mean, I couldn't cook even if I wanted to."

"Language." Jay scolded him. "And did you forget already? The two of us were going out to eat!"

Cole opened his mouth to deny the fact but no sound came out as he remembered something. "Was that mentioned when you were explaining the entire backstory of the main character of the comic?"

Jay tilted his head and thought about it. "Yeah, why?"

"This is why I didn't hear." Cole nodded and looked away in embarassment.

Jay gasped. "Cole, that part was important! Out of all the parts of the comic, this is where you dozed off?"

"It wasn't even in the comic!" Cole tried to justify his actions. "You can explain it again while you're treating us with lunch."

"Oh no, you're the one paying this time." Jay put his hands on his hips. "Revenge at last!" he joked.

Cole rolled his eyes. "No money, remember?" he reminded him.

Jay sighed. "Okay, fine! You win… This time."

Lloyd shook his head at their silliness. "You two go have fun, okay? I'll drop by the office to see what Zane, Nya and the others are up to."

"The last one to exit the house is a dirt pile!" Jay called out before dashing outside.

On the other hand, Cole hadn't even got up from the couch. "Dork." he mumbled under his breath as he stood on his feet.

"You know," Lloyd began. "Jay really likes you."

Cole raised an eyebrow. "You think I don't know that?"

"Sheesh, it hasn't even been a day and you two are already acting like a married couple." Lloyd commented. Although hesitant at first, he patted Cole's back. "Go on, it's time to be called a dirt pile by Jay."

Cole started walking backwards toward the door. "Technically, you are still in the house so…" he opened the door and saluted Lloyd playfully. "Tell Kai I said hi, dirt pile."


Cole and Jay were sitting down on a bench to enjoy their lunch; hot dogs. It wasn't anything luxurious, but they were with each other and that's what counted.

"Really, Bluebell? A plain hot dog? No ketchup or anything?"

"It has dry onions as a topping!" Jay said. "That's something."

"Yes but it needs something liquidy to become easy to shallow-"

"For someone who lived off prison food for months, you sure have a lot to say about a hot dog." Jay interrupted him. "Now-"

"Yeah, yeah," It was Cole's turn to interrupt him. "I'm ready to hear about that Fritz Donnegan guy or whatever his name is."

"Actually, I was thinking we talk about something more interesting."

"Such as?"

"Fritz Donnegan's side kick!"

Cole groaned and took a bite of his food. "You're unbelievable."

Jay chuckled. "I'm just messing with you, idiot."

It didn't take long for the conversation to actually become interesting for Cole. One thing led to another and they found themselves talking about all sorts of things. Meanwhile, they treated themselves with some ice cream from the nearest shop, only to return back to their beloved bench afterwards.

"You know," Jay said as he stretched his arms. "the time for you to move out will come one day."

Cole was surprised Jay brought up that subject. "How come you say that?"

"No particular reason." Jay replied. "Do you think that your apartment will be close to Lloyd and I's?"

"It better be." Cole pressed his lips together. "But it doesn't really matter."

"Why?" Jay tilted his head. "What if it's out of town? How will we-"

"It doesn't matter." Cole interrupted him. "Because I'm talking you with me anyway."

Jay blinked, taking a moment to process Cole's words. "Oh!" he chuckled nervously and couldn't hold back a tiny smile. His face had turned bright red and he felt like hiding it behind his scarf.

But he didn't.

Soon, the gap between the two boys was closed. Their kiss didn't last long but it was enough to share their thoughts feelings with each other.

It was hard for both of them to believe that this was actually real. It just seemed to good to be true. It only seemed like it was yesterday that Cole had moved in with Jay and Lloyd.

They pulled away from each other and looked deep into one another's eyes. Cole placed his hand on Jay's cheek to stroke it gently. "Jay?" he whispered.

"Mm?" Jay hummed.

"You're blooming."

"Wh… What?"

"I said you're blooming." Cole repeated. "Isn't that what bluebells do? Bloom?"

Jay exhaled in relief. "You scared me there for a second."

"Hey! I'm not that bad at being romantic!" Cole complained.

"Mmmm, it's a start." Jay gave him that. "But that's okay." he said and rested his head on Cole's shoulder, smiling widely and closing his eyes. "You're still my beloving criminal."