Chapter Two: Quarantine Fifteen
Hey, you guys actually like this idea! I'm so glad I started this story!
This chapter is gonna start getting into some darker stuff. Unfortunately, as we all know, this quarantine isn't just about sitting at home and not having to go to school. Everyone who has food, good health, and a roof over their head has a lot to be grateful for, and I certainly am. However, being socially isolated, bored out of your mind, anxious about the pandemic, and uncertain about the future make this quarantine difficult even for those of us in fortunate situations. Even if your family is not directly affected by the virus, the state of our world today can have a substantial negative effect on mental health, and I wanted to draw some attention to that.
The lack of movement many people are experiencing due to being stuck inside all day, combined with the urge to eat out of boredom, has led many people to start voicing concerns about the "quarantine fifteen." Screw that! We are living through a global freaking pandemic! Our weight is the least of our concerns—if we do gain anything during the lockdown, we'll lose it easily when our lives go back to normal. But for those who have suffered from eating disorders, it's not quite so simple. I've been in recovery for almost three years, and after getting progressively better and closer to "normal," my current situation triggered me and I fell back into old habits. I thought it would give me some semblance of control when I felt like I had none, but to nobody's surprise, it only made me feel a hundred times worse. So I'm not going to go too far into this topic, as I work my way back into recovery, but I do want to address it. This is yet another problem posed by the virus, and it's incredibly dangerous and well-hidden, so in order to fight it we need to shed some light on it.
I'm issuing a TRIGGER WARNING because this story will include talk of eating disorders. I've always been fond of the idea of diving into the psychology of the ninja, and even seen some character arcs hinting at possible mental health conditions they could realistically have to face. This will not be the only mental health-related topic in the story, but it is unlikely that any others discussed will require a trigger warning. I think this is a good opportunity to bring attention to these difficult subjects, and I believe I can work them into the story in a way that will make the chapters more engaging without making the overall story too depressing.
If you are struggling with anything at all, please feel free to PM me. I promise I will respond, and I promise you are not alone. None of us are.
Now on a brighter note, reviews!
ColdWaterChicken: Aww I'm so glad! I'm surprised there aren't many (if any) other stories of this sort. But I do really want people to feel more connected to the ninja—maybe feel less alone, because it's far too easy to feel alone right now. And I'm glad the pandemic isn't affecting you too much. I wish I could say the same for myself! And yes, clean and disinfect! And play piano—I'm trying to learn guitar myself!
NinjagoLloydLove: Thank you! And I agree—I will never tell anyone that Lloyd's not adorable, because I hate to lie! XD
ProfessorYeti: Oh my gosh, you are so right! I address that in this chapter. Cole being a ghost and Zane a nindroid...they can't catch the virus! But yeah, they can still spread it. Thanks for catching that! And I'm so glad you're enjoying the story!
Speaking of the story...
Jay's avatar zoomed across the finish line as the others watched the TV screen in awe.
"And…that's it!" The blue ninja yelled excitedly. "Ninja Kart III—beaten by Jay. Add it to the pile."
Frustrated, Kai picked up the video game's box and tosses it on the growing pile of games which the master of lightning had beaten. "Not fair," he complained. "If you gave any of the rest of us a turn, we'd be the ones beating all the new games. You're a game-hog, you know that?"
Jay shrugged. "Better than being a cake hog," he said. "Isn't that right, Cole?"
The master of earth looked up from his plate. "Well, if you want cake so bad, make it yourself," he retorted. "You can't hog what's yours."
"What are you talking about?" Jay asked. "I know Zane made that cake for you."
"Actually, no," Cole argued. "Not this one. Zane taught me how to make the perfect cake, and I actually made this one all by myself." He smiled proudly.
"Well, almost," Zane said. "I pulled it out of the oven before you burned it." He glanced at his black-clad friend, who was motioning for him to shut up. "But, other than that…yes, Cole made this cake all by himself."
Kai looked over at Cole. "What's that, the third cake you've eaten this week?"
"Hey, I had to practice my baking skills," the earth ninja replied defensively. "And what am I supposed to do, throw them all out? If I make a cake—if anyone on this ship makes a cake—you bet your ass I'm eating it."
"How do ghosts even eat?" Lloyd asked, confused. "Wouldn't the food just phase right through you? Er, wouldn't you…phase…through the…food?"
Cole shook his head. "Oh, trust me, we can eat," he reassured him. "I mean, we don't have to eat, but we can."
"Yeah," Nya added, "I remember when Ghoul Tar ate potstickers, they actually weighed him down. They made him fatter, too."
Lloyd's eyes widened. "Ghosts can get fat?" He shuddered. "Gosh, I thought the only good thing about dying was not having to worry about your weight anymore."
"Since when are you worried about your weight?" Jay questioned. "You're, like, a child."
"When are you guys gonna stop acting like I'm a kid?" Lloyd folded his arms. "The Tomorrow's Tea made me right around your age—Sensei said it added about four years, which means I'm only a year younger than Nya now."
"Physically, maybe," Jay said. "Mentally you're, what, twelve?"
The green ninja scoffed. "I was twelve when I used the Tomorrow's Tea!" He exclaimed. "I would have been sixteen. But I'm not. I'm twenty. My ID says so."
"How the hell did you get an ID that says you're four years older than you actually are?" Kai asked him. "Isn't that technically a fake?"
Nya laughed. "If anyone would know about fake IDs, it's you, Kai," she remarked. "You had one when you were fifteen."
"Well, when you have to run a blacksmith's shop and take care of your little sister as she's going through her tweens, I think you're justified in engaging in a little underage drinking," the fire ninja defended himself.
Lloyd shook his head. "I went to get my driver's license last year, and Uncle Wu went with me and explained what had happened." He smiled. "When you're known for saving the city on multiple occasions, they tend to realize they have bigger problems than accelerating your legal age by a few years. Besides, what would be the point of a fake ID that says I'm twenty? I still can't buy alcohol anyway."
"Fair enough," Kai conceded. "Can we get back to talking about how you think about your weight? You're in perfect shape. If anyone needs to be worried about their weight, it's Cole."
Cole bristled. "Hey!" He exclaimed. "When we lost Zane, I went through a really dark period of time. I used food to cope then. But when we got him back, my abs came with him." He shrugged. "It's not like I have to be in great shape for anything right now. When life gets back to normal, so will my eating habits and my body."
"So wait, you're saying eating three cakes in three days isn't normal for you?" Jay teased.
"No, it's not," Cole replied. "It usually takes me at least five days to eat three cakes."
The others laughed.
Cole smiled. "I'm fine, guys. I promise. The 'quarantine fifteen' is the least of our concerns. Especially since Wu won't let me go out even though I'm a ghost! Something about getting germs on my uniform. He's just being extra cautious right now."
Zane nodded. "He told me the same. Of course, being a nindroid, I cannot catch the virus. But I can still spread it. I wouldn't risk that even if Sensei would let me leave. Besides, I am enjoying bonding with you all. As long as we have each other, this quarantine will be a piece of cake."
The oven timer went off.
"Speaking of cake," the nindroid said, "looks like mine just finished cooking. Cole, did you make the frosting?"
"Yep!" Cole dashed to the fridge to grab it.
"You're making another cake?" Kai asked in disbelief.
"Don't worry," Cole reassured him. "This one's for all of us, not just me!"
"Okay." Jay rolled his eyes in amusement. "Whatever you say."
The master of earth moved his index finger toward the bowl of chocolate frosting.
"Wait!" Zane exclaimed. "Wash your hands! Twenty seconds, at least. With soap and warm water."
"I'm a ghost," Cole reminded him, annoyed. He dipped his finger into the bowl and scooped out a small bite of the frosting. He poked his finger at Zane's blushing face. "Try it!"
The ice ninja did as he was instructed, holding back a giggle. "Wow, Cole," he remarked. "I think this may be your best batch of frosting yet!"
"Sweet!" Cole said excitedly.
"Yes," Zane agreed. "It is quite sweet."
Laughing, Cole threw his arm around his friend's shoulders. "You're quite sweet," he told him.
The two worked together to frost the cake before bringing it out to the others, who were watching intently as Kai attempted to follow in Jay's footsteps by beating Ninja Kart III.
"Cake time!" Cole announced excitedly.
Kai paused the game. "Quarantine fifteen, here we come!" He joked.
Zane sliced the cake into six even pieces, then began handing them out to each of the other ninja. "Enjoy!"
Kai, Nya, and Jay dug into theirs immediately, wolfing it down as though they hadn't eaten all day. Which of course, they all had—there wasn't much to do aboard the Bounty other than eat all of the food in the pantry which Wu had to replenish almost daily.
Lloyd stared at his piece, biting his lip as the anxiety set in. He picked up his fork and scraped off a tiny bite of the frosting.
"C'mon, Lloyd," Cole said, looking up from his half-eaten piece. "Try it! Zane made the cake, so it's safe to eat, I promise."
The green ninja forced a laugh. He brought his fork to his lips and consumed the small bite. "Mmmm," he said. "This is really good! I'm really impressed, Cole! Great job on the frosting. It's almost as good as Zane's, and that's saying something!"
"Thanks, Green Machine!" Cole said. "Now try it with Zane's cake! The two of us make the perfect team, I swear!"
Lloyd took another bite, this time getting both cake and frosting. He nodded. "Yeah, you're right! This is amazing! Thanks, guys." He set the plate and fork down on the table.
Kai looked at his blond friend, a hint of concern in his brown eyes. "That's all you're having?"
"Oh, yeah," Lloyd sputtered. "I actually just had the biggest lunch. I told Sensei to stop buying cereal, 'cause I swear I've eaten almost all of it. He didn't listen." He laughed nervously.
"Ah, so that's what happened to the corn flakes," Jay remarked. "I was pretty sure we had an entire box in the pantry, but I went to get some earlier and I couldn't find them."
"Sorry," Lloyd apologized. "I finished them off about an hour ago. Do you want my cake?"
Jay happily accepted the barely-eaten piece of cake as Lloyd handed him the plate. "Uh, is that even a question?" He took a bite without hesitation.
Lloyd stood up. "Well, I'm gonna go do some training," he announced. "Thanks for the cake, Cole and Zane." He headed in the direction of the staircase which led to the deck. "See you guys later!"
As he left the other five to finish their massive portions of cake, his stomach growled in protest. He coughed to mask the sound, and ignored the pain as he headed for the training course.
Lloyd will be fine, I promise. Like I said, I'm not gonna dive too deep into this storyline—it's gonna be more of a general concern that I want to address, and I'll focus mostly on him fighting it and recovering. So not too tragic, but if you are easily triggered by this stuff, please don't read this! My goal is to help people with this shit, not make it worse. Also to help myself, I suppose. Please reach out if you're having a hard time with anything related to mental health, or if you're just bored and want someone to talk to, because same!
Please review!
Also, I'm currently rereading Second Wind so I can crank out some new chapters soon! My goal is to have it updated by the end of the week! :)
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P.S. WASH YOUR HANDS!