#indigo posts

The Sons of Garmadon and the Oni had forced him to put a pause on sorting out his feelings. But, they'd been dealt with, and now life was back to normal. Well, apart from the fact that Cole was crushing on Zane even harder than before.

They'd shared little moments together that made his heart flutter, such as when they went undercover to spy on the Sons of Garmadon. He was pretty sure he'd almost fainted when he'd seen Zane's disguise. It was incredibly unfair that he looked good in everything.

But Zane had a girlfriend, and he was clearly very happy with her. So, Cole was screwed.

Jay poked his head into Cole’s room. “Hey, lunch is ready!”

Cole rolled out of his bed and walked into the dining room.

Zane grinned and waved at him when he saw him. He awkwardly smiled and waved back. He sat in one of the chairs.

Zane’s face lit up as Pixal entered the room. Cole’s heart felt heavy. Was it jealousy? Loneliness? He wasn't sure. Probably both.

He listened to his friends talk as he ate. He spent the next half an hour trying not to obviously gaze at Zane. Everyone, including Cole, complimented his cooking. He beamed, his sky blue eyes glistening with pride. Cole’s cheeks turned pink.

“Cole, may I talk to you about something?” Pixal asked.

He snapped out of his trance. “Uh, yeah?”

Pixal led him to her bedroom, which made him nervous. Why had she singled him out? Why couldn't she talk to him in front of everyone else?

“So… what did you wanna talk about?” He asked.

She hesitated. “Forgive me for asking this if I’m wrong, I am not the best at social cues. But, do you have romantic feelings for Zane?”

Cole’s face turned bright red. He stuttered over his words. He was unable to say anything comprehensible, so he shut his mouth.

“I believe I have figured out the answer to my question.”

“I-I’m not gonna flirt with him or anything! I wouldn't—I would never get in-between you two!”

“I never said you would. I only wanted to be certain instead of acting based on an assumption.”

He hung his head. “You’re gonna ask me to keep my distance from him.”

Pixal cocked her head to the side. “What? No, I was going to tell you it’s okay to try and pursue him. I do not mind sharing him. I just want him to be happy, and I think you would try as hard as I do to make him happy.”

He reeled. “Oh. I, um, was kind of expecting you to be mad at me.”

She grinned at him. “Even if I did not want to share him, I wouldn’t be upset at you for having feelings for him. You cannot control who you are attracted to.”

He grinned back, feeling incredibly relieved.

There was a knock on Pixal’s door.

“Hey, we’re gonna start the movie without you,” Nya warned.

“It appears as though we have business to attend to,” She said.

Cole chuckled, “I guess we do.”

They moved to the living room. All the other ninja were either sitting comfortably on the couch or had been banished to the floor.

She sat down on the floor next to Zane. Cole hesitantly sat beside him as well. He tried to focus on the movie. But he was flustered from his conversation with Pixal, and now he was sitting next to Zane. It was hard to pay attention to anything other than him.

He could just barely hear Zane ask Pixal what their conversation was about and if Cole was okay. She told Zane to talk to him. His heart began to race. He’s gonna talk to me about it!? What am I supposed to tell him!?

The movie was over sooner than Cole would've liked. Zane instantly pulled him aside, and he still had no idea what to do. He stared down at the floor, his heart beating even faster than it ever had.

“Cole, are you all right?” Zane asked. “You’ve been rather quiet lately.”

“I’m fine,” He answered quickly.

Zane frowned. “I am afraid I do not believe you. Please, tell me what’s wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong, you don’t have to worry about me.”

“I care about you, of course I worry.”

Cole fidgeted with his hands. He gazed into Zane’s shiny blue eyes, and blush spread across his face. The heartache that had lingered in the background of his emotions was fronting. He was going to break.

“You can tell me anything, I promise,” Zane insisted.

Cole sighed, “I just—I really like you in a romantic way. I didn’t wanna get between you and Pixal, but she figured out I liked you and she said she would be fine with some form of polyamory. But I don’t think you like me that way, and I don’t want things to be awkward between us. But I also feel like my heart is gonna explode every time I look at you. I don’t know what to do. I—”

Zane gently placed his hands on Cole’s shoulders. “Deep breaths, I do not want you to have a panic attack.” He chuckled.

Cole took a breath. He focused on Zane’s gentle touch as he slid his hands down to Cole’s.

“I must admit I am... surprised by your confession, I had no idea you had romantic feelings for me. And I must also admit that I’ve been experiencing romantic feelings for you for a few weeks now.”

His eyes lit up. “Really?”

“You always notice when I feel upset and come to comfort me. You make an effort to spend time with me. You compliment me any chance you get… We would obviously need to talk to Pixal about this, but I would love it if we could be partners.”