All characters belong to the creators of "Lego Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu." This story is compatible with my first Lego Ninjago fanfiction: "Brotherhood". I hope you enjoy!
Cole grunted. Sweat trickled down his face and body, soaking his tousled hair. Elemental powers or not, he would stay in shape. Plus, he liked being strong. Maintaining his physical strength built his mental strength as well. His mother's dead eyes flashed in his mind. Shaking his head, he pushed it away. Maybe he wasn't as strong as he thought. He picked up another weight.
"Cole?" Said man jumped. Turning his head slightly, he smiled at the woman standing just inside the room.
"Hey, Nya."
"Whatcha up to?"
"Nothin. Just getting ready for our fight with the Overlord." Nya didn't miss the smile he gave her, chuckling at the barely concealed bravado. She still hadn't told him about the love machine and, quite frankly, she didn't want to. If Cole was going to fall for her, it was going to be because he liked her - not because some machine influenced his decision. Cole put the weight down.
"Hey, Nya, can I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
"How did you... cope with your parents dying?" Nya's eyes widened only slightly. She gave him a small smile.
"That's a new one. Why do you ask?" Cole paused, thinking. No... debating.
"My mom died when I was little. Kai's told me about how you lost your parents. You seem to handle it well, so... Sorry. I probably shouldn't have asked." His embarrassed chuckle did little to ease the heavy atmosphere.
"Well..." Nya said. "I just take it one day at a time. I remember what they taught me and try to follow their examples."
"But what do you do when you miss them? I... What do you do to cope with the pain?"
"I take it one day at a time." She had gotten closer to him as she spoke. Putting her hand on his shoulder, she returned the sad smile he gave her. Tears hiding behind his eyes, he didn't fool Nya. He was hurting, and he had become far too skilled in hiding it.
"Thanks, Nya."
"Talk to me any time." They looked at each other for a moment, sharing their pain simply by standing in each other's presence. Kai's voice broke the silence from upstairs.
"Guys, come on! Jay's gonna eat all the pudding again!" Nya and Cole chuckled.
"I guess we'd better get going then," Cole said. As the two made their way upstairs, Nya didn't miss the way he looked at her... or the way their hands brushed against each other. Though it was an accident, she felt her heart skip a beat. She pushed the thought aside.
Sitting around the dinner table, the ninja laughed and talked and pushed away all thoughts of romance from Nya's mind, if only for a short while.
Lying in bed later that night, she watched as the stars spoke of a budding bloom between Water and Earth.
Hey, y'all! Honestly... not sure how I feel about this one. Wanted to write some romance but, since I'm not far enough in "Brotherhood" to get to that yet, I decided to write a oneshot. Hope you all enjoyed it. Full disclaimer: I cannot WAIT to get to the romance in "Brotherhood".
God bless!
