"Clear your mind, Jay," Lloyd spoke quietly. Jay breathed in deeply. He took one last look at the area around him. Lloyd had told him to meet up in the forest for their practice time. They sat in the middle of a grassy field. The afternoon breeze blew through Jay's ginger hair. He stood three feet away from his teacher before shutting his eyes to focus. Silence consumed the two. The lightning master's mind whirled with thoughts. He tried to dial it down, but the awkward quiet time was gnawing at him. The chatter box hated when there was no talking. Even when he falls asleep at night, he would be listening to one of his favorite YouTubers playing videogames. Jay then pondered on that thought.
What if the lack of silence in my life is because I always had parents who worked night and day on machines and noisy power tools. On top of that, they'd wouldn't stop talking, even over the radio they'd constantly bla--
BAM!
Jay fell on his back with a loud thud. The ginger looked up to see Lloyd towering over him.
"What was that about!?" Jay spat in anger.
"Element of Surprise..." he answered. Before Jay had time to even process his words, Lloyd charged towards him. The lightning master jumped up quickly and dashed away.
"What kind of training is this!?" Jay exclaimed as he ran around the meadow.
"The element of lightning is quick, powerful, and decisive. There's no time to overthink." Lloyd jumped up into the trees once Jay ran out of the meadow.
"Okay! So, tell me again why you're trying to hurt me!?" Jay shouted as he sprinted through the forest, huffing already from the sudden exercise.
"Lightning doesn't take a second to plan out every little detail of where it's going to hit," Lloyd explained while he hopped from tree to tree. Jay searched the leaves above him for any sign of the teen. "It finds the closest source of attraction and STRIKES!"
BAM!
Lloyd jumped down from the tree and tackled Jay to the ground. The two tumbled in the dirt before sprawling out onto the forest floor. Jay's took in a few winded breaths while Lloyd stood up again.
"We gotta get you out of your head and stop thinking too much."
"That's... e-easy enough... I... I spend little time alone with... my... thoughts! Ugh! I seriously need to exercise more!" Jay complained in agony. He was sweating bullets already.
"That would be ideal, but I saw how you were when we stood there. You've spent so little time for yourself that I think you don't take a moment to process anything. If you wanna have a clear mind when you're using lightning, then you have to first face your demons," Lloyd admitted, bending down to Jay's level.
"Sooo... you're saying that I shouldn't think when using my powers, but I should first get all my thinking and processing out of the way, so I can have a clear mind to not think..."
"Exactly."
"And, what demons are you talking about... exactly?"
"I don't know, I'm not your brain," Lloyd replied before standing up straight and strolling over to a tree. Jay groaned. He let his head fall back on the ground. The student stared up at the blue sky above him."Listen, I know you hate staying quiet for too long. I could see you obviously are avoiding things that you don't want to face. I'd suggest talking it out with someone." Jay dwelled on his teacher's words. There wasn't anything specific he could think of that was bothering him, besides the obvious secret from Nya, but he couldn't tell anyone that! Jay sat up from the grassy floor.
"Uh, there's nothing really I can think of that's bothering me," he lied with a weak smile. Lloyd stared at him for a second and shrugged.
"Then, I suggest taking some time for yourself. Let your mind wander. Don't be afraid of taking quiet time for yourself," he admitted. The teen then held his hand out to Jay. The ginger accepted and was helped off the ground.
"That's enough for today. Take the rest of the day to focus on what I said. I'll see you in class," Lloyd waved off before walking away. Jay glanced down at the ground. He pondered more on what happened with Nya. He knew that was an obvious source of his uneasiness, but there was another question that entered his mind.
"Uh, Mr. Garmadon," Jay called out. Lloyd turned towards the lightning master. Jay fiddled with his fingers before focusing his attention back on him. "Where can I find Wu?" If there was anyone who could give him good advice for his situation, it was the old man. Lloyd's eyes widened at the question. His body seemed to freeze with that name.
"H-how... how do you know that name?" he stuttered. He suddenly felt like a little kid again, searching for his lost parent figure day and night. Jay could see the whiteness in the teen's face and was afraid to continue.
"Uh, he's the one who came by my trail-- house one day and told my parents about Elemental Colleges. He seemed pretty nice. I've never met such a calm old man. Usually, they're yelling at kids to get off their lawns or whatever els--"
"No, I mean I haven't seen my uncle in months. I thought he was gone for good," Lloyd mumbled under his breath.
"He's your uncle?" Jay asked curiously. He tried recalling the old man's face to see if there were any resemblance.
"Did he say anything about where he's been? Where did he go after talking to you?" Lloyd asked, stepping forward. Jay stared down at the teen. He suddenly looked very young to him now. Jay could see the twinge of sadness in his eyes.
"Uh, no sorry. All he said was that he and his brother owned the college and that elementals get a full-ride, free of charge. Afterwards, he just... left." Lloyd examined Jay for a few seconds as if he were looking for clues to a crime scene. The teen's phone then buzzed inside his pocket. He pulled it out only to then curse under his breath.
"I got to go..." Lloyd trailed off sadly.
"I'm really sorry I couldn't be more help," Jay admitted weakly, rubbing his arm anxiously. The green wearing teacher glanced up at him with a half smile.
"No, thank you... I'm... glad... he's okay," he spoke calmy, but the ginger could see him clenching his fists. Lloyd dashed off towards whatever was next on his schedule, leaving a very concerned Jay.
Later that night, Cole headed out of Dareth's Sub slowly. He was exhausted after another long shift. He headed up towards his apartment. The student dove for the keys inside his pocket. While yanking them out, a piece of paper flew. It danced acrossed the air before landing safely on the stairwell's floor. He bent down and picked up the tiny thing, rembering what was written on it. The earth master stared down at the note with his keys still inching towards the lock.
His mind flipped back and forth as he read over the message again and again. He turned around and leaned his back against the door. Cole then let out a sigh.
Guess I'm really doing this...
He pulled out his phone and dialed the number. It buzzed for quite a while. So much so that the Master of Earth was beginning to think his choice was a bad one.
Buzzzz...buzz... buzzzz...
"Hello?"
That familiar vanilla sounding voice rang through Cole's ears.
"Hey, it's me. You wanted to talk?" he replied slowly, sounding more tired than he intended.
"Yeah... but uh... we can wait until tomorrow if you had a long day," Seliel spoke with a hint of uneasiness.
The earth master was taken aback by how she sounded. For the few days he's known this girl, she had been nothing but brash, rude, or angry with every word she spoke to him. Now, though, she talked like a sweet little bird that's afraid to chirp too loudly in fear of waking you. Cole pulled away from the phone and looked down at the number he typed in.
Did I call the right person?
Seeing that the number was right, he put the phone back up to his ear.
"Uh, no, I'm fine. I called you anyway, right?" Cole replied casaully, making himself chuckle.
"Right, well, I wanted to say sorry for dragging you into that fight with those two clowns," she responded. Her voice gained a bit more confidence, but Cole could still feel the shyness in her tone.
"It's fine... those guys got the worst of it thanks to your throwing arm," Cole stated, trying to ease her. A giggle escaped her lips, but it died pretty quickly.
"I also wanted to apologize for all our interactions before that. I've not had the greatest experience with elemental masters in the past. I guess I judged you before getting to know you," Seliel explained, sounding embarrassed now. Cole grew a small smile. He was surprised to be hearing all this from the pink haired girl. "So, to make it up to you... I'd like to take you out to lunch. I... I would like to get to know you more... if that's not too weird... or something..." Blood suddenly rushed to Cole's face. He could feel the heat of his cheeks while his mind played back to what Dareth said.
Are you sure you're not just nervous because you haven't been on a date before?
Cole's heart began to race at the thought. Was this actually happening? Was he really just asked out on a date? He shook his head violently.
It's not a date! It's not a date! We barely even know eachother, dang it!
"Cole?" Seliel asked again. The earth master snapped out of his thoughts. He coughed a bit to clear his throat from the nerves building up.
"Yeah, sure, sounds... sounds good. When did you wanna... go out?" Cole's voice nearly hitched at the last two words.
"How about tomorrow afternoon? We can meet up at that bakery down by the park," Seliel suggested with a lighter tone now. Cole perked up at the mention of baked goods.
"Sure! Meet you around 2?"
"Sounds good, see you then."
"See you."
After Cole hung up, he sighed happily. He could feel that sudden heat on his cheeks disappear. They were going to a place he loved fondly. His mind was a bit more at ease with the idea of going somewhere he knew well.
BAM!
Cole fell backwards from where the door use to be. Kai glanced down at his raven-haired friend with a raised eyebrow.
"Who were you talking too?" he asked suspiciously, eyeing him.
"Nobody," Cole lied, staring right at his fiery roommate.
"Sounded like you were talking to a girl..." Cole formed a pout before sitting up.
"Yeah, Kai, I was speaking to my secret girlfriend that I've never told anyone about for years. You've cracked the case, Sherlock!" Cole spoke while standing up now. Normally, Kai would snap back at him, but all the spikey-haired boy could do was smirk.
"You're getting defensive. It was a girl! Haha!" Kai mocked loudly. Cole rolled his eyes before shutting the door behind him.
"What girl?" Jay asked once he and Zane entered the room.
"Cole's got a girlfriend," Kai replied smugly.
"She's not-"
"Will we be expecting her for dinner tomorrow? We were all going out to eat and--"
"Zane, she's not my--"
"Ooooo, you kissed her, yet? Jay teased. Cole's cheeks burned pure red as he buried his face in his hands.
"I hate you all," he mumbled in irritation.
"Love you too, dude," Kai spoke happily before checking his phone.
"Welp, that's Skylor. I better go. If I wanna win this bet, then I gotta have the Element of Surprise," Kai spoke while revealing a rose hidden in his sleeve.
"You mean the bet where she led the tango in the hallway?" Cole mocked while Kai headed for the door. The fire master's head turned back to his roommate with a baffled look.
"How did you-"
"Kevin told me he saw you two. We work at the same sub shop," Cole explained with a smirk. Kai then huffed while slamming the door behind him.
Ding!
Zane pulled out his phone and grew surprised by a sudden message.
"What's wrong?" Jay asked, noticing his demeanor.
"My brother just texted me... him and father are coming to visit tomorrow," Zane muttered with dread.
A/n: Dun dun dun! Lol, of course, I had to bring in little Echo! How could I not? Hope you guys enjoyed. See you next time!