Epilogue-Wishful Thinking

The rest of the year rushed past.

Prom. Where Jay managed to acquire dozens of pictures of Cole, pictures he would treasure forever. Some goofy, some heartwarming, and some simply heart-stopping. Jay still couldn't understand how Cole could so easily make him go haywire.

It was a surprise to no one when Nya, Jay, and Zane were accepted to the school of their choice. It was a surprise to hear Kai had been accepted. Maybe the universe had decided to finally cut him some slack. Or maybe, Kai had hidden talents he'd been unwilling to share.

Exams. Exhausting exams. Jay, Cole, and Kai had found it hard to care. They were weeks away from freedom. They'd gotten through the worse of the year. There wasn't much fuel left in their overworked minds.

Nya and Zane wouldn't hear of it. They pushed their friends forward. It turned out that together, they made a terrifying but inspirational team.

And now this. The last day of school. The last day of these lockers, of these halls, of these classrooms. Jay felt as if he were readying himself to visit another planet altogether.

"Hey, Motor-mouth."

Cole slid up beside him. Jay gave him a quick smile, before returning to the task of emptying his locker. "Motormouth. I still have to kill Nya for that."

"She really hit the nail on the head though. It was nice you had a warning label on you." Cole said. "Still, I wasn't really ready for all that happened once I met you."

"Can't ever be ready for me. Not really. I'm a storm, baby." Jay gave Cole a wink. He shut his locker, easy attitude fading with a sigh. "This is it, huh? Wow. It's weird. I mean, I knew high school would end but. . . I don't know."

"Well, you've still got a whole summer of hanging out with me before you really have to worry about the next step." Cole pointed out, gently turning Jay towards him. One of the passing students gave a teasing whistle. Cole responded with a roll of his eyes. Jay responded by momentarily morphing into a tomato. "So- . . . Relax."

"Relax?" Jay scoffed, reddened cheeks glowing. "I'm afraid you haven't gotten to know me as well as you should have."

"I just figured it was worth a shot. Maybe no one had ever suggested you do that before."

"Trust me, that's all anyone ever suggests."

"Well, since you're not going to take me up in my offer to relax, can I ask you a stressing question?"

"Sure," Jay shrugged, adjusting his backpack against his shoulders. Together, they walked out of the school.

"Where's the teapot? Did you get rid of it?"

"It's in my backpack."

"In your backpack?" Cole laughed. Frowned. "You're joking, right?"

"No."

"Jay, correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you say this whole ordeal started because you had the teapot in your backpack?"

"You're wrong. Technically it started the first time I decided to wish. Or, better yet, it all started to unwind the moment you broke my nose and made me fall in love with you." Jay said, earning an annoyed look from Cole. "Look, look, what else was I supposed to do? If I leave it at home my parents could find it. Use it. Or even worse, sell it! And how, exactly, am I supposed to get rid of it? It's not like there's a volcano readily available for me to toss it into."

"Okay, okay." Cole unlocked his truck. They both slid inside. "I get it. Just promise you do want to get rid of it."

"Well, it's not like I've got any more wishes, heh."

"I'm serious."

Jay shifted. "Yes. I want to get rid of it. Sorry. It's hard not to joke when . . . I don't know. Heavy stuff."

"Yeah, I've noticed," Cole said. "And. . . I think I've got an idea?"

"Oh good. What is it?"

"Ouroboros."

Jay deemed it a miracle to find the lost city a second time.

Cole deemed it proof of his godly navigation skills.

"What if someone, somehow, finds it anyway?" Jay said, squatting down on the sand to bury the rusted teapot. "This isn't really getting rid of it."

"It's as close as we'll get. I'll tell you if I find a volcano though."

"Please do."

Cole kneeled beside Jay. He helped with the process, fingertips quickly growing painfully warm. "Still though. Wouldn't you feel bad if we actually destroyed it?"

"Feel bad?" Jay scoffed. "That Djinn is evil incarnate. No, I wouldn't feel bad. Good riddance."

"I don't know. I mean, he's still a living. . . being of some sort. He's got to have a reason on why he- why he's so intent on hurting people. Maybe someone hurt him first."

Jay stopped digging, shaking his head. He placed a hand on Cole's shoulder. "Dude. That 'living being' nearly murdered all of us without hesitation. You are way too good for this world if you're thinking these things."

"Definitely too good for you, I'll tell you that," Cole said, pushing Jay's hand off his shoulder. "Just dig, boy, before I decide to leave you here."

"Aye, Aye." Jay chuckled, giving Cole a fake salute. He then tossed the teapot into the hole they'd made, shoving sand back over it. When they had finished, it was impossible to tell anything had been done at all.

Jay stood, dusting off his jeans and staring into the spot he supposed the teapot was. "May no one find you ever again."

"And if someone does, may they at least find a good way to end it all." Cole finished.

They stood side by side in comfortable silence for a minute. Jay's fingers reached for Cole's. Their hands tightened around each other, minds flipping through memories of everything.

"So what's your plan after summer?" Jay asked. They turned to return to the coolness of Cole's truck. "Now that you're freed from the shackles of your dad's dreams."

"I don't know." Cole beamed. "Isn't it awesome?"

"Well. . ."

"For the first time ever, I don't have the rest of my life perfectly planned out before me. I could do anything." Cole's eyes shone with excitement. Jay committed the expression to memory. "I'm starting with getting a part-time job. And after that. . . see if I can sort of. . . search around. I've always liked drawing. So that's a start already."

"You better keep me updated. I want to know everything."

"Writing a novel about me?"

"Maybe," Jay smirked. "I'm calling it, The Story of The Boy Who Thought He Was Perfect Until He Saw True Perfection. True Perfection being me, of course."

"It's a little wordy, and a little inaccurate, but I'll let it slide."

"Also, just because you're going to have a job and I'm going to be a college student doesn't mean I'm going to allow our time together to lessen. I don't know how you're going to pull it off, but I expect to get as much attention as I'm getting now, if not more."

Cole laughed. "Maybe I should get the teapot out and wish for a time machine."

Jay pretended to consider the option. "Hm. Maybe you should. I'm very demanding, you know."

"Oh. Yes, I know."

They exchanged a bit of laughter.

"In all honesty. . ." Jay said, tone softening. He looked up into Cole's eyes. "I'm still sort of expecting to wake up, realize everything was some sort of dream. I'll be as boring as ever, and you'll be hanging forever out of my reach.

"I mean, whoever heard of anyone getting anywhere through wishful thinking?" Jay shook his head. "Can't be real."

"It's real. I promise. As real as it gets," Cole said. " I mean, honestly, you really think you have enough imagination to come up with all the things I've done?"

"Maybe." Jay smiled.

"Okay, well, how about this then?" Cole leaned forward. He hovered just out of reach, giving Jay a teasing smile. Then, he kissed him.

Jay kissed him back, drowning, as always, in the incredible impossibility of it all.