"So, for instance, these solubility rules will usually favor aqueous solutions..."

Zane had invited Cole to come over and study, and for the past hour he had been rather helpful. It was in no way the white ninja's fault that he was not paying attention. There had just been this itch in his mind for at least a week now, and he wanted to get rid of it. The problem was that he just did not know how. The flowers that Jay had given him were sudden, but he still felt guilty that he had not been prepared to give him anything in return. He knew what Jay liked, but he wanted to make sure the gift was perfect.

"Cole."

His brows furrowed in concentration. He tapped his pencil's eraser against the book in front of him, thinking up a number of solutions to his dilemma. Unfortunately, none of them seemed to stick.

"Cole."

Baked goods were a nice idea, but in the end he figured that he would end up eating them all before he even got a chance to give Jay any. He did not want to present his partner with any other perishables, either, just in case he could not get the present to him in a timely fashion.

"Cole, it is obvious that you are not paying attention." Zane pressed the pad of his index finger into the center of his forehead, staring directly into his eyes as he startled. "What is on your mind that is preventing you from studying your chemistry?" The master of earth sighed, knowing that the ice user would be able to eventually pry the answer out of him if he resisted.

"I wanna get something for Jay, and I don't mean something simple that you could just give to anyone. It's gotta be personalized, y'know? Something that says, 'This reminds me of you when I look at it.' There are a lot of things to choose from, but I... You can stop poking me now." The white ninja retracted his arm and continued to listen. "I thought that maybe we could incorporate our elements, somehow? But... I dunno, do you think something like that exists?" The boy across from him rolled his head to the side in thought, as if looking far into the distance for an answer.

"I believe I know exactly what you are looking for," Zane said with excitement as he turned back. He had an almost impish grin on his face, holding out his hand and helping Cole up from the carpet of his apartment living room.

"Where to?" Cole asked, following him to the front door. The master of ice walked out and down the stairs with the black ninja trailing at his heels.

"Actually, the place where Nya is studying in her free time. The Institute, downtown," he replied. Both of them got in his car and drove off down the road. Cole had never been to the Ninjago Institute of Art before, and only knew that Nya was there to improve her photography skills. He knew that Zane was being cryptic on purpose, and decided that if he waited he would know what exactly he meant by all this when they got there. The streets of the city passed by his window in a multi-colored blur, the late afternoon sun gleaming off of store windows.

He had seen the architecture of the Institute in magazines and when he had drove by, but Cole was still shocked by the massive glass-like building. Fountains of all shapes and sculptures lined the path to the entrance, and when they got out of the car he could see groups of people in the small, circular patches of grass that were raised on stairway-connected platforms. Zane led him inside and brought him up to the third floor using the elevator, which was also made of the same vitreous material as the outside of the structure. When they got off, the white ninja searched the floor for someone specific.

"My friend should be around here somewhere," said the aqua-eyed boy, looking around until he found who he was looking for. "Skylor!" He briskly walked up to a girl with scarlet hair and green eyes. She was wearing a sherbet orange sweater with a black cat on it. When she saw Zane, she closed her laptop and waved at him with a smile.

"Hey, Zane!" she beamed as she stood. "Who's your friend?"

"Skylor, this is Cole Brookstone," he smiled back, ushering his team mate forward. "Cole, Skylor Chen."

"Nice to meet you," said the art student, shaking his hand.

"Now, Skylor, I know this is short notice but I think I may have found your project inspiration." As soon as Zane finished his sentence, the red-haired woman's expression grew enthusiastic. She opened her laptop and rapidly started up a notebook program.

"Go on," she hummed, typing out a heading. Zane nudged Cole, and he took a step forward.

"Well, I wanna get something for my boyfriend that's really personal. See, he's a sweet, shy guy who has all this energy that he tends to bottle up, and I don't know how to put that into a gift," he explained, a slight rose in his cheeks from saying all this to a mere acquaintance. Skylor typed things out quickly, occasionally stopping to take a break and consider something.

"Mhm," she grinned. "This is perfect. Zane, use three words to describe Cole in his relationship."

"Supportive, caring, respectful," he listed off without a beat. Skylor put it all into her notes at a rapid pace.

"Cole, name Jay's main hobby and his favorite colors," Skylor continued.

"He likes blue, orange, and reading." Although the lightning ninja was a bashful, more delicate soul, he was a sucker for adventure and sci-fi novels and comics. The more intense, the better. These stories were often the main focus of many of his lengthier conversations.

"What hobby and colors do you like, Cole?" she asked as she wrote.

"Music, brown and black," he replied without a second guess. She nodded, put down her final thoughts, then closed her computer again. "So, what's with the questions?"

"Follow me." Skylor smiled wide, practically bounding off into another room. The two ninjas met back up with her in a large jewelry making classroom. "Our latest project involves making dual pieces and having people model them. I think you just got me an A. I've always wanted to try something like this." She rushed over to a work table and pulled out some strings and a large case of semi-precious stone beads.

"Let's see," she said, pulling up her notes on the desk. "Well, for one of them I'll use some of these, and this charm would work..." Zane smiled at Cole, who looked back at him with a small grin of confusion. They watched her compare color schemes and materials for a while, but then she ushered them both out, saying that it would be better if they saw the finished product alone and that they should go down to the food court until she was ready for them.

They only drank some bubble tea and chatted away, but it was still nice to have some one-on-one time. The two of them had never really hung out alone outside of their chemistry class, and Cole found it nice to be around his fellow ninja.

"So, have you seen her do this stuff before?" he asked Zane.

"Oh yes, Skylor is very talented. She's the one who made Nya's earrings and necklace for the formal a few months ago," said the ice user. Cole nodded in thought, remembering how excited the master of water had gotten over her outfit. Usually she just wore whatever was comfortable, but that night she wanted to look her absolute best. Her necklace was layered, and each level became an ombre of aqua and silver that looked like the ocean. Her earrings were small, translucent orbs with a few cyan gems inside of them.

"Impressive," the earth ninja smirked. "Do you think she'll make what I'm looking for?"

"Without a doubt," Zane replied, taking another sip. It was an hour or so before the jeweler came back, holding something in both of her hands. Cole was on the edge of his seat, wondering what the result looked like.

"Alright, here you go," Skylor said as she handed two bracelets to him. He took in a gasp, smiling down at her handiwork. Both were about a half-inch thick and made of the same chestnut leather that was engraved with braided patterns. One of them had three skinny beads that were as tall as the leather was placed at equal distances from each other; one onyx, one tiger's eye, and one black rutile quartz. The other had the same bead locations and sizes, although these ones were an azurite, a spessartite, and a lightning ridge opal. The first bracelet had a silver double eighth note charm dangling from the area where a fourth bead may have gone, and the other had an open book charm. "What do you think? I made sure that the leather is durable so you can where it all the time."

"Zane, you were right," Cole chuckled, admiring the jewelry again. It was exactly what he was thinking of, simple, expressive, and they could even wear it when they trained or fought enemies.

"Just be sure to take some pictures of you and your boyfriend wearing them and send them to me," Skylor beamed, giving him a velvet bag to put the bracelets in. An electronic bell rang, and the red-haired girl flinched before gathering her things. "Oh, shoot! I'm so sorry Zane, I have to go. It was nice meeting you, Cole! Thanks for modeling these for me!"

"Thanks for making them!" he called after her. Cole slid the items into the pouch and turned to face the white ninja. "So, what should we do now?"

"You should call Jay. No. Call everyone!" Zane said happily, bouncing in place. The ice user paced the floor with a huge smile, creating a big plan in his mind. "We should all go to the park and bring some food! You can give it to him there! I will also see if Nya can take pictures of you two and give them to Skylor for her project!"

"That sounds like fun," Cole laughed, lightly tugging on his team mate's sleeve to bring him back to real life. "Do you have a picnic blanket or something back at your place?"

"I do indeed," said the white ninja, clasping his hands in front of him.

"Why don't we drive back to your place and get the blanket? I'll call everyone when we get back in the car, then we can go out and get some stuff to bring." The master of ice nodded rapidly, nearly sprinting down the hall and back into the elevator. Cole admired his enthusiasm, especially considering that he was usually so hard to read. Once they were on the road again, they had a quick drive back to Zane's apartment. The whole way there, the white-haired boy was talking incessantly about the soon-to-be get together. He was going over every single detail, and how great it would be to come together as friends without the motive of training.

Zane ran inside to get the large cloth, and came back out with two, just in case. Cole admitted to himself that he was just as excited as his friend was. He was finally going to get rid of that stupid nagging thought and give Jay a gift that he rightfully deserved. He called Kai, Nya, and Lloyd, and they all agreed happily to the meeting time and place, saying what each person would bring. Finally, Cole pressed Jay's contact, waiting a few seconds before the other end was picked up.

"Hi Cole!" came an enthusiastic voice.

"Afternoon, bluebird," he replied with a smile. "Zane and I were studying today, and we thought that we should all meet up at the park and have a potluck, as a team. I called the others, and they can make it in an hour. Think you can make that time and bring something?"

"Yeah! Actually, my mother and I got bored and decided to make some homemade ramen! I'll bring a heated pot of it so we can all have some!" Jay told him, and Cole's smirk grew at his boyfriend's gleeful attitude.

"Alright, see you in an hour," he beamed into the receiver.

"See you then!" Jay hung up a split second before him. He gave Zane a thumbs up, and they made their way towards this one traditional market they loved that was about five minutes away. The outdoor shops were quaint, but were always full of delicious food. While the ice user went to get a few main course dishes, Cole tackled the confectionery side of the picnic. He had a raging sweet tooth, himself, so grabbed a chocolate cake and a few other assorted candies. However, a memory struck him when he saw someone baking fresh desserts. Kai had bought a few mochi and anko at the flower blooming festival because they were some of his favorites, and Jay had instantly fallen in love with them. He payed for a boxed set of them and met back up with Zane in the market center.

With only ten minutes until the picnic was supposed to begin, they arrived at the park and set out the blankets. A few minutes later, Nya and Kai arrived, setting out their plates next to theirs. Then, Lloyd arrived with a lot of assorted food items that his mother had gotten for them.

"Hey guys!" came Jay's voice from behind them. Cole was still helping Lloyd when the blue ninja set all this stuff down. When he looked up, however, his breath caught in his throat. The master of lightning was still wearing his usual scarf, but he had swapped out his usual outfit for a royal blue and white varsity jacket, light wash jeans with ripped knees, aviator sunglasses that were pushing back his curls as they sat atop his head, and a grey tee that read "Adorkable" in white letters. He looked so cute, it had to be illegal.

"Before we start eating, Cole has something for Jay," Zane called out to everyone. The black master felt dread pool in his stomach, but he strengthened himself against his nervousness and quickly straightened, digging into his pocket for the velvet bag. The others were silent, especially Jay, who had inched over to him as soon as the white ninja had announced his involvement with this ceremony of sorts.

"I got us these," he stated bluntly, unable to stop the red in his cheeks. Cole pulled out the bracelets from the small sack, and Jay clapped his hands over his mouth in sync with everyone's sharp intakes. "Dunno if it's your style, but I figured that you could keep the black one, and I'll keep the blue one. Y'know... to remind us of each other when we aren't around." There was a heavy silence, and Jay had still not moved. He was unbelievably worried, and if another second passed he swore that he would break out into a nervous sweat.

"I love it!" Jay suddenly cried, flinging forward and practically tackling him. Cole balanced them and hugged him back as the others cheered and cooed. As soon as the lightning ninja let him go, he put the leather with the black stones on his wrist, tightening the adjustable strands so that it fit comfortably. Jay did the same with his, and they exchanged another embrace. "Oh, thank you thank you thank you thank you! It's so beautiful!"

"I'm glad you like them," the master of earth replied honestly against his temple.

"Is this what you wanted me to bring my camera for, Zane?" Nya asked, and the white ninja nodded. "Alright, lovebirds, let's take some pictures!" They let her pose them in order to get the jewelry in the perfect angle for Skylor's assignment.

"Stay right here, Cole," Jay beamed when they finished their little photo session. "This is definitely going on my story and my feed!" Cole allowed him to take out his phone and take at least ten selfies of them holding up their bracelets. The black ninja thought of something daring, and the millisecond that Jay's finger hit the capture button for the umpteenth time, he turned and gave him a surprise kiss on the cheek. Lloyd and Kai gave them an exaggerated 'aww' as the blue master doubled over in embarrassment.

"Sorry, Jay, that was over the line," the earth ninja chuckled, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I know you don't like kissing in public-" Instead of a verbal response, Jay just held up his phone and showed him the picture that contained the sudden smooch. Jay's face was a priceless level of shock and joy, showing just how adorable he was. The master of lightning stood back up and pressed his face into his partner's shoulder.

"I think... I wanna post this one," he mumbled bashfully.

"Ooh, you rebel you," Cole said as he slung an arm around him. "I think that's a good idea." He let Jay rest against him while he typed, watching as the others began to dig into the spread.

"There," Jay said as he shakily pressed the post button. He let out a deep breath and turned a little bit to face the black ninja. "We should probably get some food before everyone takes it." The pair sat down and filled their plates and bowls, eating together under the early evening sun. As the others joked, Cole examined his bracelet again. The rich, golden light of the sun reflected off the blue stones and made them shimmer with an iridescent effect. He smiled at the little silver book, making a mental note to wear it every day.

Nya helped cut the cake, and Cole was happy that she allowed him to take what was left home with him. Everyone grabbed some candy and dug into their desserts. A spark went off in the back of the earth user's mind.

"Oh right!" he exclaimed, grabbing the box from the other side of the blanket. "I almost forgot." He opened the package, watching Kai and Jay's faces light up with a smirk.

"Wagashi?" the blue ninja gasped in delight.

"Leave some for Kai," he winked. The two ninjas pounced on the box, happily munching on the bean-pastries. "Hey Nya, be sure to tell Skylor that I love the bracelets when you send her those pics."

"Ohf! An' me!" Jay shouted through a mouth full of cherry blossom-shaped treat. He giggled and swallowed what he had eaten. "Tell her I love them too!" The water ninja grinned and went through her camera's footage, looking for the best shots. As time passed, they shared many stories of the past week, and reveled in each other's company. Cole even told the group about Tanoshii and their little conversation, which they all found rather heart warming. On the other hand, they all groaned about Kirsten's involvement. When the black master casually mentioned the flirting that she had been trying to pull recently, the team raised their hackles.

"God, can't she just stick with one person for more than a week?" Nya growled. "You even told Tano about your relationship!"

"I know," Cole sighed. "But I'd rather just let her attempt to get anywhere with me than have her destroy my social life. I don't want anything to do with her, and I think she knows that."

"I hope she knows that," Lloyd commented. "You remember what she did to Chen all those weeks ago?" The six sucked in a breath through their teeth, an audible cringe in remembrance of the poor cheer squad and his humiliating break up in the lunch room. The poor sap was sassed and critiqued by the snake until he was almost crying after he asked her what he had done wrong.

"Yeah, and I don't want that to happen to either of you," the green ninja continued, pointing with his fork. "If you get into trouble with her, do you think you can handle it without giving her what she wants?" Cole thought it over, and shrugged when he could not think of a feasible plan. Jay shrunk beside him, nibbling on another mochi with uneasiness. The black ninja noticed and brought up a hand to push away some auburn locks that had fallen out from under the aviators.

"Hey," he whispered. "Don't worry, I won't let her touch me. Or you." The master of lightning nodded and nuzzled into his collarbone, situating himself so that he faced the group with about two-thirds of his body. The potluck continued with no further perturbation, and nobody had a care in the world when they all packed up and left. There was school tomorrow, so Cole had to run back with Zane and get his bag and books before going home. On the drive back to his house, he passed Nya on her motorcycle, who gave him a friendly wave as she crossed the intersection in front of him. He grinned and waved back, then made the final stretch homewards.

He was somewhat surprised to see his father's car in the garage, but then remembered that yesterday was the last day of his shows, and had most likely flown back to Ninjago City while he was out. He parked and stepped inside, and his father smiled at him as he put down his newspaper.

"Hey there, son," he grinned. "Where have you been?"

"Out with some friends," Cole replied, setting his backpack in the mud room. "How'd the performances go?" His father took a long sip of tea, then gestured to the seat across from him.

"Well, the quartet sounded lovely as always," he moderately boasted. "However, I would like to know where these came from." He pointed to the vase that was situated in the center of the kitchen table. The black ninja blushed a little, suddenly caring a bit if his father liked the bouquet or not, although it was not meant for him.

"Oh, they're from... my boyfriend," he squeezed out, shoulders raised a tad. Lou paused mid-drink, eyed his son for a little bit, then set the cup back down.

"Who would that be?" asked the singer. He was slowly stirring his tea, and that meant that he was thinking deeply. His father always fiddled with some object, be it a pen or an eating utensil, when he was considering something big.

"Jay Walker," Cole told him.

"Jay Walker," Lou repeated, but slower. "Ah, that boy who's parents run the flower store downtown." The way he took his next sip was so agonizingly sluggish that it appeared... condescending.

"Nice boy," he said with a deeper voice. "Well, they're a lovely bunch. For a moment I thought that you had picked them yourself." The clink of porcelain against porcelain was like a bell ringing out his death sentence. It was a sound that signified that his father did not approve. He bit back the urge to grit his teeth, recalling countless times that he had explained to his father that he was not one hundred percent straight. Lou had told him in every single one of these conversations that he supported his son, but he was still obviously trying to convince the young man that his decision could use some "rethinking".

"Yeah," Cole mumbled, standing up abruptly and making his way out of the kitchen. He ran his fingers over the smooth beads of his bracelet, hoping to calm himself down. "Night, dad."

"Goodnight, Cole," his father called after him before taking another lengthy, thoughtful sip.