“LLOYD HAS A DATE!” Jay yelled, running into the living room, where Kai and Nya were watching TV. Neither of them paid him any attention, instead craning their necks so they could look around him. “WHY AREN’T YOU GUYS HYPED ABOUT THIS?”
Nya shrugged. “Because he just turned nineteen and it’s not a big deal?”
‘It is a big deal!” Jay bent down and grabbed Nya’s shoulders. “IT MEANS HE IS IN LOOOOOOOVE!”
“JAY! KNOCK IT OFF!” Lloyd yelled from down the hall. When he walked into the room, he held his arms out to show off his button up shirt and nice jeans. “How do I look?”
Kai stood up and circled him with a proud look on his face. “You clean up nicely! I taught you so well.”
“Um, hellOOOOooooo?” Jay said, pushing in between Lloyd and Kai. “He obviously got his style from me.”
Lloyd laughed. “Okay that’s enough from you guys.”
“So, where are you going on your date?” Jay asked.
Lloyd slid his arms into his brown jacket. “It’s not a date! We are meeting up at an arcade to exchange our books and then maybe grab dinner or something.”
“Huh uh, yeah because everyone wears nice button ups to hang out at an arcade,” Kai teased, rubbing his hand into Lloyd’s hair.
“DUDE, STOP!” Lloyd yelled irritated, yet amused. “It may not be a date, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to look good! I’ll see you guys later tonight, okay?”
“Come on, I’ll walk you out,” Kai said, leading him towards the outer deck.
“I don’t need an escort, dad,” Lloyd joked.
Outside, Cole was quietly training, throwing punches at a training dummy. His fists glowed every time he swung, but the light would vanish before his punch landed. He took a few steps back and reached for his water bottle while wiping sweat from his forehead, finally noticing the two others approaching. “You look fancy!” he said, gesturing to Lloyd.
“You guys are acting like I’m wearing a suit!” Lloyd laughed.
“When all you wear are ripped jeans and oversized hoodies, you may as well be wearing a tux!” Cole clapped Lloyd’s shoulder. “Have a good time tonight, alright? And don’t forget to use protection.”
“Oh my GOD I’m leaving now.” And without another word, Lloyd repelled down from the ship.
“You getting some training in?” Kai asked Cole, the two of them now alone.
“Yep. I need to stay sharp.”
“Why were you pulling your punches?” Kai asked.
“What are you talking about?”
“When you were punching the dummy, you were using your super strength, but you’d stop using it right when you landed the punch.”
“Oh, that!” Cole took a sip from his water bottle, then put it down, taking his fight stance again. “Two reasons. One, I don’t wanna break our dummy again. And two, it’s important that I always have control over when and where I use my strength. I never want to actually hurt anyone.”
“But if you never use your strength, how will you know what you can do?”
“I’ve got a pretty good idea of what my powers do.”
Cole threw a punch, but Kai caught his fist before it landed. “Cole, I want you to hit me.”
Cole took a step back, confused. “I’m assuming you mean with my full strength?”
Kai nodded. “You have the potential to hit harder than the rest of us combined, but you always take a more defensive position. If you can learn to play more offensive, you’d be a force to be reckoned with.” Kai put his hands up. “Okay, punch me.”
“Kai, I really don’t think-”
“DO IT!”
Cole wound up for a punch, but as he threw it, Kai perfectly dodged and retaliated with his own hit, landing against Cole’s chest. The heat from his knuckles felt like he was going to burn a hole right to Cole’s heart.
Kai shook his head. “You are too predictable and too heavy with your stance. You gotta loosen up and be more bouncy on your feet.”
“I’m not as quick as you, twinkle toes.”
Kai motioned for Cole to try again. “Come on, you got this.”
Cole threw another punch, but Kai easily batted his arm away.
Kai groaned and stepped behind Cole, grabbing his waist, his warm, calloused hands gently pressed against Cole’s skin. “Relax your hips,” Kai said calmly, “and let yourself feel all that energy flow through you.” His hot breath against the back of Cole’s neck sent tingles down his spine. Cole tightened his jaw, doing his best to focus. “Feel the wind on your skin.” Kai’s voice was soft and light. “Flow with it.”
Cole closed his eyes and felt the wind, letting his body move with it. Whenever he went too far in one direction, Kai would tighten his grip and guide Cole back the other direction. Cole was melting into putty under his touch.
“Yeah, you got it!” Kai said excitedly. “This is where you want your balance to be when you’re on offense. You want to stay loose and relaxed and ready to move without moving too far in any direction. Hold that position, I’m going to do something.”
Cole suddenly felt Kai run his hands down his arms, grabbing Cole’s hands. Cole’s skin burned under his touch, making Cole shudder. Kai moved his hands, one held out in front of him and one held closer to his body. You want to be ready for anything. You can’t afford to tank hits like you normally do, you have to be ready to feel the natural push and pull in a fight.” Kai finally let go of Cole and circled him. “Now, I want you to throw a hit at me at full strength this time, but make sure you stay light on your feet.”
Cole nodded. He bounced from foot to foot and rolled his shoulders back. He then took up the stance Kai had taught him, earning an encouraging nod from Kai. Cole felt the wind pick up as he raised his fist to punch. To his surprise, Kai didn’t dodge.
Kai grabbed Cole’s wrist and pulled him forward, making him stumble out of his stance. Kai jumped and wrapped his legs around Cole’s torso, his momentum knocking the two down. Cole landed against the deck, Kai still on his torso. Kai put his hands down on either side of Cole’s head, beads of sweat dropping off of his face as he breathed heavily. He gave Cole a cocky smile, but Cole couldn’t smile back. His chest was tight with anxiety at having Kai so close to him like this.
“I gotta work on my form, I guess,” Cole mumbled.
“No, no, your form was good. You just trusted me to play fair, and I didn’t. That’ll be the next lesson I teach you.”
Cole looked up at Kai, wide-eyed, his heart beating out of his chest. Kai sat up slightly, cocking his head at Cole. “You good?”
“Am…. I interrupting something?” Jay asked, appearing just off to the side.
Kai quickly jumped up as if he didn’t just take down another man who towered over him. “DUDE! YOU MISSED IT! IT WAS EPIC!” Kai grabbed Jay by the gi. “I was teaching Cole some pointers and he left himself open for a takedown! It was so AWESOME!”
Jay looked over at Cole, who was still laying on the deck, trying to catch his breath. He narrowed his eyes. “Uh huh. I see.”
“Did you need something?” Kai asked.
“Zane wanted me to tell you guys that he has dinner ready.”
“Sweet! I can’t wait to tell everyone else about this!” Kai ran into their living quarters, the biggest smile on his face. Jay lingered for a moment, but followed Kai inside.
Cole couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. All he could do was lay there for a few more minutes, missing the feeling of Kai’s touch. Cole closed his eyes to take a deep breath, his lungs filling with the scent of a campfire in the middle of a cold Summer’s night.
—
Lloyd nervously waited outside the arcade, fidgeting with Akita’s comic book. When he and Akita agreed to meet, Lloyd had no expectations whatsoever. But since the other ninja kept calling it a date, Lloyd became stressed. Was this a date? Am I dressed up enough? Am I too dressed up? Should I have brought a gift? What if it’s not even a date anyway? What if…it is? Do I want this to be a date? I’m not sure I’m ready to-
“Lloyd, right?” A sweet voice asked behind him. Lloyd turned around to find Akita wearing a cute green dress, making her brown eyes pop and perfectly pairing with her olive skin. She held up his comic book. “I believe this is yours, kind sir.”
Lloyd smiled and offered her comic book in return. “And for you, m’lady.”
Akita playfully cringed. “Eww no, don’t ever say that again.”
Lloyd laughed. “I won’t! I regretted it as soon as it came out of my mouth.” The two exchanged books and Lloyd lit up, seeing the autograph he was given. “Thank you so much for this Akita!”
“Of course! And to say thank you, you can take me to dinner!”
“But I also brought your comic. Aren’t we even?”
Akita’s smile faltered. She waited for a laugh or a punchline, but was surprised to see Lloyd was dead serious. “Lloyd, This is me asking you to take me on a date.”
Lloyd went pale. “I am so sorry. I sometimes struggle in social situations. I had an unconventional upbringing, so I’m sorry if I ever misunderstand things.”
“What? Were you raised by wolves?” Akita joked.
“Honestly? I sometimes think I would’ve been better off if I was.” Lloyd pulled out his phone. “So, uh, where do you want to go for dinner?”
“I’m new to the area, so I was hoping you’d maybe have a place in mind that you’d like to share with me?”
Lloyd thought for a moment, then smiled. “I know a place.”
—
“Chen’s Noodle Shop?” Akita asked as the two walked into the restaurant together. “I can’t say I’ve ever heard of it!”
“It’s a pretty nice place. The owner is actually a friend of mine,” Lloyd explained.
And as if right on cue, a friendly face walked up and pulled Lloyd into a hug. “Lloyd! Hey! How are you doing?”
“Skylor! Hey! I’ve been pretty good. How are things here?”
Skylor looked around her restaurant, busy as ever. “Well, I’d say things have been pretty amazing!” She then looked at Akita and offered out a hand. “And you are?”
Akita smiled and shook her hand. “Akita!”
“I can’t say I’ve seen you before, Akita.”
“I’m new in town.”
Skylor raised her eyebrows and looked at Lloyd. “Well, you’ve got a pretty solid tour guide.”
“I’m going to freshen up in the restroom,” Akita said, handing Lloyd her comic book. “Hold this for me?” Lloyd carefully took the book and watched her leave, waiting till Akita was out of earshot.
“She doesn’t know,” Lloyd whispered.
“Know…what?” Skylor asked.
“That I’m the Green Ninja.”
Skylor stared at him. “Wait, really?”
Lloyd nodded. “She didn’t recognize me and I haven’t told her yet. Just please try to keep ninja stuff to a minimum tonight, okay?”
“Just be careful there, Lloyd. You’re playing a dangerous game,” Skylor warned. “Don’t let this come back to haunt you, okay? I’m honestly shocked you were ready to be dating right now.”
“It’s complicated, I’m not sure I’m ready either.”
Skylor blinked slowly. “So you’re hiding your identity from a girl you don’t even know if you want to be on a date with right now?”
“Yep.”
Skylor’s demeanor changed as Akita approached. “Table for two, right this way,” she said with a smile.
As they two followed her, Akita saw the conveyor belt and excitedly asked, “Is this one of those revolving sushi type places?”
“Yeah, but they have so many more dishes than just sushi! You’ll love it!” Lloyd responded.
Skylor sat them down at their table and left to grab them their drink order, leaving the two alone for a moment.
“This place is so nice! Thank you for taking me here!” Akita said. She tapped her nails on the table as she watched a few of the dishes go by. “What do you recommend here?”
Lloyd shrugged. “That’s a tough one. I’ve never had a meal here I didn’t love. Noodles of any kind are a staple of this place, but I also love their fried rice. It’s simple but still a classic.”
“These choices are going to kill me!” Akita playfully complained.
Lloyd smiled at her, but from where he was sitting, he could see the restaurant’s entrance. These two rougher looking guys walked in and seemed to be having some sort of argument with Skylor, but the noise from the other restaurant goers drowned them out. Lloyd couldn’t help but watch them.
Akita noticed Lloyd was no longer looking at her, so Akita turned around and saw the men too. “They seem angry.”
“Akita. Something’s wrong.I need you to trust me.”
“Lloyd, you’re scaring me now.”
“Akita, get down.”
“Do you know those guys?”
“Listen to me and get down.”
“Lloyd, what’s going on-”
A gunshot rang out.
“GET DOWN, AKITA!” Lloyd screamed as he dove across the table. He didn’t know what he was doing, all he knew was he had to protect her without being the Green Ninja.
