~*~*~*~
** Santa's Wish (Teach the World)**
~*~*~*~

"I'd like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony
I'd like to hold it in my arms and keep it company
I'd like to see the world for once all standing hand in hand
And hear them echo through the hills for peace throughout the land

~ The Tenors

*****

Happy Holidays! 🎄

*****

"What the hell is a Secret Santa?"

The rest of the group rolled their eyes at Kai's blunt style of phrasing but they too shared confused looks at Wu's suggestion. The headmaster had called the senior students in for a meeting in the lounge and they had all arrived staggeringly with Zane being first and Kai entering last. Cole was nibbling on some popcorn on the beanbag chair while Lloyd was doodling on his hand with a marker in the corner. Only Jay seemed excited at their teacher's suggestion, sitting up on his knees and practically vibrating with energy.

"Oh! The kids in my class did this!" Jay piped up excitedly, knocking over one of the couch cushions in his eagerness. "It's a gift exchange game. We draw names and get a specific gift for that person."

Nya tilted her head from where she was beside him. "Have you done it before?"

Jay winced. "I... was never invited."

There was a beat of silence as the rest of them tried to decide how to respond to that.

"Well, that's depressing," Kai said, never afraid to hold his tongue. The ginger deflated a bit and his girlfriend patted him reassuringly on the back.

"You can do it this year, then. With us." She told him and pressed a kiss to his cheek. Lloyd mimed gagging, earning himself a pinch in the arm.

"It sounds like an interesting activity!" Zane agreed. "Is there a competitive aspect to this game?" Kai perked up at that idea.

Sensei shook his head quickly, a small smile on his face. "Some versions might but our version will stay friendly. I'm hoping to encourage more group bonding."

The Smith siblings both huffed, disappointed, but didn't protest.

Cole raised an eyebrow. "Usually there's a price limit to this type of thing, right? We're not exactly swimming in money right now."

"Yeah, a remote boarding school isn't the best for part-time jobs." Kai snorted. Wu rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"You all can decide amongst yourselves what you think the maximum amount should be." The headmaster said. "Of course, homemade gifts are also a good idea. It is not about the money spent but the thought put into the present."

Kai rolled his eyes up to the ceiling and let them stay there. Sensei Wu ignored him, continuing to lecture about the merits of a heartfelt gift.

"Let me get some paper and I can start writing down our names," Nya said, taking charge as always. "Someone grab a hat or a bowl so we can shuffle it up." Lloyd moved to where one of his sketchbooks was stashed, hidden between the back of the couch and the wall, and tore out a page.

"Oh! We can use this!" Cole suggested, lifting a small bowl.

"Weren't you just eating out of that?" Lloyd asked in disgust before Nya snatched the marker from his hand and began to scribble down their names.

"Yeah, we're not using that," Kai said, making a face. "Let's use Wu's old person hat instead!"

Wu paused mid-tea-sip. "I beg your pardon?"

The brunette reached over and plucked the straw hat straight from the elder's head and flipped it over so it was like a large dish. "See!" He said proudly. "Perfect!"

Nya shook her head but dropped the folded-over slips of paper in.

"And remember!" Jay advised. "We have to keep the name we get secret! It's more fun when we don't know who's going to give a gift to who!"

"Says the blabbermouth." Cole snorted.

Jay stuck out his tongue in retort as Nya tried to get their attention again. "Alright! Who should draw a name first?"

"I suppose I will give it a try," Zane said, slightly uncertain as he shuffled towards the hat. "I just grab one then?" Nya nodded and the taller boy ripped a hand into the small collection of names. He plucked out a paper and opened it to read. Kai was already leaning over to try to get a peek but Nya smacked him somewhat gently in the shoulder.

"No peeking!" She scolded, bouncing the hat a bit so the names would get mixed up.

"I'm not!" Kai whined before he swiftly reached across and snatched a name from the hat. His sister glared at him but he just gave her a wide, fake smile and then hunched over to read who he got.

"Over here please!" Jay called cheerily. Nya smiled and easily passed the hat to him. The ginger closed his eyes and shuffled the paper around with his fingers before he chose one. Then he held the hat out for his girlfriend to choose. Nya paused, looking at the paper calculating, and then reached in and took one out.

There were only two left and both Cole and Lloyd didn't really seem to care. They simply reached in and selected whichever paper was closest.

"Great! Now we get a Christmas gift for the person that we drew!" Jay said, waving his name happily.

Cole shoved his hand away. "We're all gonna see who you got if you keep doing that!"

Jay sheepishly stuffed the paper back in his pocket.

"Good luck with your gifts, students!" Wu said in closing, smiling wide. "Remember! Anything you put care and effort into will be good! It does not have to be perfect."

"Yes, it does," Nya muttered.

"That's B.S." Kai agreed.

* 🎁 *

Jay anxiously wandered down the road, wincing whenever a car honked loudly on the street beside him, adding to the already chaotic atmosphere the city bloomed. He had finished his homework early and elected to go with Zane when he visited Pixal and Borg. He figured if there was a perfect gift it had to be in Ninjago City.

Unfortunately, he was yet to find one. The boy sighed to himself, rubbing at his forehead as he pulled out his slip of paper. On it, in Nya's curly handwriting, was the name: Lloyd.

It wasn't that his classmate would be particularly picky about his gift. Jay knew for a fact that the blonde would be satisfied with anything. But he also knew that they weren't as close as the others. Nya was Lloyd's roommate, Kai had developed a brotherly bond, and Cole and Zane fussed over him like they were his parents. While Jay and Lloyd always got along well he was worried that in failing to find the perfect gift, Jay would show that they were more disconnected in comparison to the others.

"What does Lloyd like?" Jay wondered aloud, pausing to survey the windows and apologizing when he would accidentally block someone. The younger seemed to enjoy art but he didn't have a lot of formal education on it. Jay wondered if it would be welcomed or overwhelming for him to be gifted fancier art supplies rather than the dollar store pencils and paper Lloyd usually purchases.

Lloyd was also a big fan of sweets but Jay didn't think the team would appreciate him buying a bunch of candy for the blonde to gorge upon. With a soft disappointed hum, Jay turns away from the candy store, all the brightly coloured snacks looking much too sugary for their green bean to be consuming.

He continued to stroll down the street, wandering by all the shops and heading deeper into the downtown area of Ninjago City. He paused when he approached a familiar store, one he had spent much of his youth in, and one that he knew a little Lloyd had frequented. With a grin, Jay reached for the handle and pushed into the store, a tiny bell ringing when the door hit it.

Doomsday Comics was just the same as Jay remembered. The carpet blue with colourful shapes decorating it all over, similar to an eighties arcade, though a bit worn and faded. There was a large display by the window with cardboard cutouts of characters from the comic featured. The store was packed with shelves and shelves of comics, beanbags and chairs tucked in wherever they could fit so people could read when they wanted to. The walls were covered in posters and artwork, even some personal art signed by some of the comic artists. On one wall by the counter, there was a collection of pictures of the owner of the store posing with some celebrities at conventions. Most of them were comic artists but there were a few actors as well. The counter itself was packed with clutter. Figures and other knickknacks overloaded the surfaces while the display cases were advertising other nerdy things like game dice, replicas of movie and comic weapons, t-shirts and other merchandise.

"Well if it isn't Jay Walker!" A voice boomed, startling Jay from where he had been frozen, staring at the room before him.

The ginger turned to see a man walking towards him, a large grin on his face. Rufus McCallister, or "Mother Doomsday" as many had taken to calling him. The store owner had aged some, just as Jay had. He'd grown at his hair a lot more but instead of leaving it down and messy, he had pulled it back into a ponytail. His beard was a bit more rough now, longer and more wild, with a bit of grey hair starting to show its way through. As Mother Doomsday greeted the boy smile lines pinched at the corners of his eyes. He still wore a faded t-shirt, this time with the title Galidor across his chest.

"Where've you been, kid?" Doomsday asked clapping him on the shoulder.

"Oh, well, I'm at a new school now," Jay said with an awkward shrug. "It's outside the city so I'm not here as much."

The man hummed, studying him carefully. "The people there any good?"

Jay couldn't stop the smile that immediately formed on his face. "They're amazing honestly."

McCallister let out a chuckle. "I'm happy for you. I know you had a rough go at it. Finding your people? Now that's truly special."

"A-actually! That's why I'm here!" Jay said quickly, flushing when he realized how fast he had been misdirected from his task. "I'm not sure if you know him but a boy named Lloyd Garmadon would sometimes come here?"

"Oh yeah! He was a real ball of spunk!" Mother Doomsday chuckled, slowly migrating back to the counter. He pulled out a grey device, a price gun, and began to stamp prices onto some comics. "He was always sneaking in here to go read in the cubby." He jerked his head over to the very back of the store. Tucked behind one of the shelves was a small indent in the wall, originally meant to be a large built-in shelf that had been converted into a tiny reading nook for the kids. It had a green cushion and glow-in-the-dark stars stuck onto the wall by it. Jay could see why Lloyd had taken a liking to it.

"He was really into Starfarer. Always grabbing the latest issue. But some snotty kids kept coming in here and teasing 'im." The store owner shook his head.

Jay winced. Oops, another accidental stumble into Lloyd's childhood trauma. "We're friends now," The boy said before Doomsday could drop more of his peer's secrets. "I know he likes Starfarer but I'm pretty sure he's already read all of the comics currently released." The two of them had spent hours geeking out of it. "Is there anything else that you remember him liking? Maybe something he wouldn't have read in a while? Or is just something that he'd like?"

McCallister thought for a moment, looking to the side as he flicked a clearance tag onto another graphic novel. "I know he had started getting into Wish Caster Ruby before those kids started teasing him. It's a bit more of a feminine graphic novel- you know? Technically a magical girl story. But it's kinda mature for its genre and Lloyd always liked the intense adventure stuff."

"Okay! Where can I find them?" Jay's eyes widened.

"Left wall most likely." The man gestured vaguely towards the direction. "I think the author is Kimi Nguyen?"

"Thank you so much!" Jay exclaimed before he rushed towards that corner, clumsily knocking into display stands as he went.

Mother Doomsday shook his head as he turned back to his task of pricing. Who could've guessed? Jay Walker and Lloyd Garmadon were friends now. He chuckled a bit to himself, looking up to peek at where Jay was zeroed in on two graphic novels, looking between them as he tried to choose which one to get.

"I wonder how they know each other." Doomsday mused. "Must be some school."

* 🎁 * *

Kai decided that Wu was a crazy old man and Jay was stupid for encouraging the elderly man's silly ideas. The brunette was flopped on his bed, grumbling to himself as he tried to think of what he could possibly get his giftee.

Zane.

Friggin' Zane.

The man who wants for nothing and whose interests are either super expensive like technology or super mundane like cooking for the group.

Kai let out another frustrated groan, slamming his head back into his pillow. Seriously, couldn't he have gotten Jay or Cole? They're both so vocal about their interests that it would've been easy!

"Having troubles, brother?" A voice teased. Kai lifted his head to glare at where Nya was peeking through the doorway.

"No," Kai replied petulantly. She stepped into the room, closing the door behind her and gave him an eyebrow raise. "This Secret Santa thing is just stupid!"

Nya laughed. "So you got someone tricky then? Perhaps a certain tall, pale-faced blonde?"

Kai's jaw dropped. "How did you know?"

"Lucky guess."

"Well... did you get anyone hard to get for?" Kai tried to ask subtly.

Nya gave him a stink-eye. "I'm not telling you!"

"Oh come on! Maybe we can swap?" Kai pleaded. He sat up and tugged on her sleeve. "Zane is so hard to buy for! He uses a monotone for everything!"

His sister tugged her arm away from him and grabbed a pillow to hit him in the face with. "No way! I got a super easy one!"

He batted the pillow away and pouted. "Not even for your favourite brother?"

Nya snorted. "Look, if you're so stumped maybe you should ask his little girlfriend?"

"Pixal?" Kai wrinkled his nose. "I don't know if she'd want to talk to me."

"You mean you don't want to talk to her." Nya corrected. "And here I thought you were charismatic." She clicked her tongue, shaking her head in disappointment.

Kai felt a spark of outrage flicker in his chest. Charismatic? He was charismatic! And he certainly wasn't afraid of Pixal! Even though she barely gave any emotion and hardly said a word to him and clearly means a lot to Zane so if he messed it up maybe something bad would happen and Zane wouldn't like him and-

"I'm not scared of talking to Pixal!" Kai snapped.

Nya tilted her head. "I never suggested that." She said innocently.

Shoot.

Kai scowled. Sometimes he really hated his sister.

"Don't you have a boyfriend to bother?" He snarked. He paused and then said quickly, "Not that I'm encouraging it."

Nya rolled her eyes and stood up. "Call Pixal, Kai." She told him. "She's nice."

Kai muttered under his breath, sounding suspiciously like he was mocking her but Nya elected to ignore him, leaving the room with a pointed look.

"Call Pixal," Kai huffed to himself, flopping back onto the bed. "I don't need to call Pixal. I can think of something myself."

He then proceeded to try to think of something. Key word being tried. After about fifteen minutes of a blank mind and useless staring at the popcorn ceiling, Kai sat up with a frown.

"... do I even have Pixal's number?" Kai asked himself reluctantly. He reached for his phone and typed in the password, scowling when he realized Nya had messaged him Pixal's contact information. Under it, she said:

For when you inevitably listen to me.

Kai wasted another fifteen minutes not calling Pixal in protest.

Finally, when the amount of time he was spending dawdling was becoming ridiculous, Kai reluctantly dialled her number and waited anxiously as the phone began to ring. It was only after two that Pixal answered, a bored: "Hello, Pixal speaking" sounding through the speaker.

Kai coughed, panicking when he realized he hadn't planned out what to say. "Hey-Pixal," He said disjointedly. "This is... Kai. Zane's friend." He tacked on in case she had forgotten.

"Yes, the hot-headed one, correct?" Pixal said in reply.

What the heck are you telling her, Zane? Kai seethed in his head. "Yes." He ground out through clenched teeth.

There was a pause. "Did you need anything?"

Right. "Our group is doing a 'Secret Santa' for the holidays and I have Zane. He can be...." Kai winced as he tried to think of the right words. Irritatingly perfect? Annoying happy with everything? Infuriatingly hard to read? "-tricky to buy for. I was wondering if you had any suggestions?"

There was another pause.

"You don't know what to get him?" Pixal asked, surprised.

Kai felt himself flush, shame tightening in his chest. "Look- I'm trying okay! That's why I'm calling you!" He snapped.

"I apologize I didn't mean to sound judgemental!" Pixal said hurriedly. "I was simply shocked that you're ... well- asking me. Especially when you're all so close. I suppose I ... I'm flattered."

Kai pulled away from the phone to exhale loudly through his nose and reminded himself that Pixal wasn't a mean-spirited person. She wasn't going to make fun of him, especially when she was so desperate to impress Zane's closest people.

Calm down. Kai chided himself. You're getting worked up over nothing. Swallowing down his defensiveness, the boy pressed the phone to his ear again.

"Yeah- well-Zane always says he's fine with everything instead of giving an actual answer on anything," Kai sighed. He pressed his lips together. A voice that sounded suspiciously like Headmaster Wu urged him on. Say how you feel. It's okay to be vulnerable.

Shut your mouth, Old Man! Kai hissed at Mind-Wu. But he reluctantly forced himself to continue. "I want to get Zane something he actually wants. He... he's always thinking about us- and me. He's kind and ... he deserves something nice for himself- you know?"

"Yes, I do." Pixal's usual monotone voice, though quiet, turned warm at the end. There was another moment of quiet before she spoke again. "He's been thinking about his family a lot. He doesn't talk about it but I can tell."

"Oh." Zane had told them about what he'd learned. But he'd discussed it in a detached- almost professional-sounding kind of way. Kai had known there was something more hidden underneath but despite having lots of experience in the 'losing' family department none of them knew how to get through to him. He seemed more comfortable brushing it off.

"I think a reminder of the family he has built here... would be beneficial to him." Pixal continued gently. "And a more than needed gift."

"We can't- we can't replace them, Pixal." Kai was all-too-familiar with people trying to become his new parents. It's why he and Nya stayed in the system for so long. People came in, looking for little faces, thinking they could fix everything and be the better parents. Then they'd be shocked when that did not work and instead, they got too troubled kids with zero interest in disingenuous parents with a hero complex.

"Of course not." Her reply came easily, in the same matter-of-fact way she says everything. Her clinical way of speaking surprisingly relaxed Kai. She spoke as if there was no doubt. "But Zane has always considered you all family. To know that you are and are there for him is something he values. His birth parents... while connected to him and still important- they don't truly hold much meaning to him right now. He desires connection and given that he has little memories it's hard to imagine a bond with strangers. Your gift should remind him of the great connections he has made himself."

"Oh." Kai pressed his knuckles to his lips, thinking hard. "... you're right. Thank you, Pixal. I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome." She responded. She then proceeded to hang up without saying goodbye. Kai stared at the beeping phone for a moment before shaking his head. Maybe Pixal wasn't so bad after all.

* 🎁 *

"Merryyyyyy Christmas!" Jay cheered happily.

"Shut up, Jay!" Kai snapped. "I can't believe you managed to get into my room this morning. We lock our doors you know!"

Jay rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, shrinking away from the unimpressed looks his classmates were shooting him. But not even the glares of his peers could tamp down his mood. He skipped cheerily through the room, plopping down on the couch next to Nya. She blinked blearily at him, her breath making her frazzled hair flutter.

"Sorry, honey." He apologized. "I guess I got a bit too excited."

Since many of the kids needed to go home for the holidays they decided to do their little celebration early. But after Jay heard about the various sad, pathetic holidays his friends' had he insisted they try to replicate his happier experiences- all the way down to getting woken up at the crack of dawn from a hyperactive ginger bouncing on their bed.

Lloyd yawned from his spot on the beanbag. "If this is what the holidays is like I don't know if it's worth it."

"It is! It is! Trust me!" Jay rushed to assure him. "Let's do presents to make everyone happy! We're all excited for presents, right?"

"Anything so we can go back to bed." Kai whined, flopping dramatically over Cole's legs. The black haired boy easily kicked him off onto the ground. "Ow!"

"Is Sensei Wu going to bring the presents?" Cole asked. "I left mine outside his door like he asked."

Zane shook his head. "He said he was occupied this morning. He arranged for someone else to bring them in."

"What idiot would agree to participate in this?" Kai snorted. As soon as he finished saying those words something red smacked into his face. "Hey!"

"Hello, Kai." Mistaké said cheerily, eyes narrowed.

The brunette gulped and quickly grasped onto the gift that had hit him. "Hi Mistaké! Wow, you look great today! How've you been?"

"Too little, too late, young man." The old woman sniffed, giving him one last flick to the forehead. She then went around the circle they had situated themselves in, handing out the presents. The rest of the group made sure to thank you profusely, trying desperately to stay on her good side. Once she was gone they all collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

"Nice one, brother." Nya snickered.

He rubbed his forehead with a pout. "Haven't I suffered enough today?"

"Who will open their gift first?" Zane asked curiously as he inspected the small bag in his lap.

"Lloyd should!" Jay shouted suddenly then he slapped a hand over his mouth.

They all sent him a look out of the corner of their eyes as Lloyd began to pick at his gift, a smirk on his face. "Wow, I wonder who my Secret Santa is." He said sarcastically but he smiled as he pulled apart the green paper.

The smug expression quickly faded into genuine awe as he revealed his present. Inside was a thick, good quality sketchbook. The front was decorated in cherry blossom trees and the inside was full of bleed-proof paper. Underneath rested two comic books. The first two volumes of Wish Caster Ruby perfectly protected in their protective plastic bag, keeping them in mint condition.

"Oh my god," Lloyd breathed, taking out the comic books and leaving through them immediately. "H-how did you know?"

"Mother Doomsday works in weird and mysterious ways." Jay answered with a shrug.

Lloyd barked out a laugh. "Of course! Mother Doomsday! I forgot about him."

"Well, he didn't forget about you." Jay told him. He wrung his hands, watching nervously. "Do... do you like it?"

"Are you kidding? I love it!" Lloyd beamed. He looked to his anxious friend and hesitated a moment before leaning over and giving him a hug. "Thank you, Jay."

"You're welcome. It's n-no problem." Jay sniffled, clutching at his sweater and trying desperately to keep it together.

"Oh, Jay!" Nya laughed, patting her boyfriend on the back.

He pulled away, wiping furiously at his eyes. "Who's next? Someone should go next!" He squeaked, embarrassed.

"Me!" Kai said before anyone else could say anything. He heaved up his bag with a giddy laugh. "This thing is heavy!"

"Go ahead, buddy." Cole said with a roll of his eyes.

With a pump of his fist, the brunette pulled out the paper and peered into the bag. He looked up, shocked. "Are you joking?" He immediately looked to his sister.

"What are you looking at me for?" Nya asked innocently.

"Don't play with me! Only you would think of this!" Kai yelled, voice rising excitedly as he reached in and pulled out a red guitar. "HELL YEAH!"

"THAT'S A DOLLAR IN THE JAR!" One of the kids yelled from the other room. Kai rolled his eyes and tossed shoved some money into the cleaned-out jam jar the kids had positioned on the coffee table.

"That is so cool!" Lloyd exclaimed. They all leaned forward to get a better look at it. It was busted up and clearly a little worse for wear but Kai didn't seem to care, studying it with such joy and intensity.

"How'd you get the money for this?" Kai interrogated his sister.

"Well- obviously it's second hand." She laughed, giving up on trying to keep the secret. "But I was able to haggle with the guy quite a bit. His mom really wanted him to get rid of it. Also I have a job."

"This is amazing! Thanks, Nya! You're the best!" Kai said, marvelling at the instrument in his hands.

"Don't you forget it." She threatened him teasingly. She snatched up her own gift. "If Kai gets to go by being a brat then I'm going next!" No one dared protest, letting her cheerfully examine her present.

"Well, it's neatly wrapped so that rules out Cole and Kai." She said, running a finger over the carefully folded edges.

"Hey! You don't know that!" Cole protested.

"And Jay gave his present already... so it's either Lloyd or Zane." Nya decided. She squinted at the two, pinning them in place with her glare.

Nya's stare was calculating and penetrating. She was incredibly good at reading her friends (or pressuring them into breaking) but both of the blondes had a decent poker-face. Lloyd's was fixed in a much more serious expression, chin up in a challenge, whereas Zane more-or-less looked like he'd zoned out with his mind in another dimension. After another few seconds of unwavering, intense eye-contact Nya sat back.

"It's Lloyd." She declared, tearing into the wrapping paper.

"Darn it!" Lloyd grumbled, dropping the expression. "She always knows!"

"Nice try, Greenie." Cole laughed. Lloyd stuck out his tongue .

"Oh my gosh!" Nya giggled when she peeled away the paper. She pulled out a box. "You're so cute, Lloyd!"

The blonde's face immediately went red. "No I'm not!"

"A bracelet maker? It's so sweet!" She reached over and pinched st his cheeks. "It's like when we first became friends! Awww!"

"It's for you to do with Pixal! And I'm not cute!" There's something else too!" Lloyd yelled when everyone began cooing at him, jumping at the chance to tease the youngest.

While he tried to drown himself with a pillow, Nya looked for the second gift, tilting her head curiously when a card fell out. To her surprise, it had her name and face on it.

"It's a temporary pass at the gym." Lloyd mumbled through the pillow. "So you have access to the pool there and the equipment. It's onto for a month or two though so you can decide if you like it or not."

"Lloyd!" Nya yanked him away from the pillow. "This is amazing!" She excitedly punched him in the arm.

He grunted. "That kinda really hurt- ow!" He winced when she followed the hit with a strong hug. "That's good- th-please stop." He wheezed.

"Oh! Look! I'm going to open my gift now!" Cole announced, saving Lloyd as he reached for his box. "This is hefty too!" He gently shifted it, trying to gauge what it was. It wasn't a wrapped gift, instead being placed in a holiday box. He easily lifted the lid and peered inside, jaw dropping at what he saw.

"A whole cake!" Cole exclaimed, carefully lifting it out. The cake was one layer but it was a decent size, almost as big as his head. It was mainly coated in thick buttercream but the outside was carefully decorated in holiday embellishments with piped Christmas trees and icing sugar snow dusted on top. The boy leaned over it and inhaled loudly. "And it's chocolate!"

"So, Zane obviously." Kai snickered.

"No one else would have been able to make a that cake that good." The tall boy sniffed, crossing his arms.

"Thank you so much, Zane!" Cole said gleefully. "This is the best Christmas ever! A whole entire cake for myself!"

"Woah, woah, woah!" Jay interrupted. "I think you should have to share it!" He teased, leaning over as if to take it.

Cole raised a hand to stop him and lifted the dessert out of the ginger's reach. "No I don't! Stay away! Mine!"

"Careful, Jay. You know what happened last time." Lloyd warned, grabbing onto his shoulder and steering him back. "We don't want to have to take you to the emergency room again."

"I was joking." Jay huffed, crossing his arms.

"Here, sweetie." Nya said to calm him as she passed over his gift. "Why don't you open that?"

Jay brightened immediately. "Okay!" Immediately, he reached into his bag, pulling out all the tissue with ease. His brows furrowed as he caught sight of a box and he tilted the bag to let it slip onto his lap, eyes widening when he realized what it was. The limited edition extended version of the 1980's Starfarer movie stared up at him. Accompanying the beautifully decorated container, covered in fan-drawn art of the ships and stars, was an action figure of Fritz himself.

"This is incredible!" Jay couldn't stop staring, his gaze soaking in every detail. "We have to watch this at the next movie night!"

Nya peered over to squint at the box. "It says it's three hours!" She exclaimed in disbelief.

"And every minute is a pure art." Lloyd sighed. Jay nodded seriously in agreement. Nya rolled her eyes but didn't saying anything, letting her boyfriend excitedly read the back of the box.

"Who do you think your secret Santa is, Jay? Cole or Kai?" Zane asked. Both boys smirked at their curly-haired friend, waiting for his response.

Jay hummed, tapping a finger to his chin. "Thats tricky. Because while Cole does know me the best Kai could have asked around for suggestions."

"Give me some credit! I know you like Star Life or whatever." Kai huffed, crossing his arms.

Jay raised an eyebrow. "So that would be Cole then." Kai scowled in response but didn't protest.

"It's Starfarer, Hot Head! Keep up!" Cole laughed. He turned to Jay and clapped a hand over his shoulder. "I hope you like it, buddy. It was hard to find but I pulled some strings." He said the last part a bit snugly.

Kai snorted. "Okay, rich boy. We get it. Let's let Zane open the present from me then." He nodded to the last bag left on the table. It was a simple white gift bag with tissue paper but Zane picked it up with the reverence of something truly valuable.

"Thank you, Kai." Zane said sincerely, a wide smile on his face.

The other boy flushed and looked away. "Shut up and open it."

The blonde chuckled but did as told. He pulled out the tissue paper and carefully folded it off to the side. Then he pulled out the gift gently. Everyone shuffled forward, curious about the big book that Zane revealed. Its cover was mostly blank with no title or illustrations or anything. Simply a small insert that Kai had slipped a piece of notebook paper inside reading: Wu-Cru.

"This is a very nice book!" Zane commented, slowly admiring the binding.

"Enough about the book! Open it!" Jay said impatiently, draping himself over the arm of the chair and pulling it open. The binding cracked and they all collectively gasped when they saw the first page. It was a scrapbook. A bit messy and disorderly but it clearly was created with care. Nya slowly turned to look at her brother who refused to make eye contact while the rest of them oohed and aahed at all the pictures.

Kai had stuck in photos from their first days at the school. Most of them had been taken by Jay and Cole but Zane had always willingly participated in selfies when asked. Kai had been very vocal about not wanting to be included in the early days but they managed to sneak him in the background, even a few closer up when he wasn't paying attention. There were pictures from game nights and sneaky photos during class when Wu was distracted, Jay had caught Cole mid-nap many a-times with Nya studying dutifully beside him. Nya was also very active in the photos taking and there was an unsurprising amount of her and Jay, even before they were dating, and a million more once they were. Lloyd began to appear soon after, especially in the pictures Cole took during their cooking sessions with Zane calmly mixing ingredients in the foreground and Lloyd sneaking tastes in the back. Kai noticeably began to take more pictures once the Green Bean joined. He seemed to have a plethora of cute photos of Lloyd snoozing or concentrating on his drawings. Misako had even contributed some baby photos that made Lloyd immediately try to shut the album.

In between and around all the photos were little stickers and drawings that Kai tried to decorate the pages with. He put lots of science related things next to Zane and nerdy pictures were added to Jay's pages. His sister got some cool girl power! stickers as well as comments on how scary she was that earned Kai a whack. Lloyd's pics were accompanied by artsy decorations and cute animal puffy stickers. The blonde gave his friend the stinky-eye for that. Cole, of course, was surrounded by food pictures. They were all of meals that Zane himself had made. The ravenette was practically drooling just looking at the delicious dishes. The doodles added alongside were rough, mostly stick-figure drawings, though Kai somehow managed to include some of Lloyd's art, but he also tried to include his own words. Labels with best day ever and these idiots would appear occasionally, including a World's Greatest Sensei tag added to Wu's page. It was all extremely personal and while Kai looked awkward as they looked through it, they could tell he put his heart and soul into creating the scrapbook.

On the final page Kai pasted in the professional group photo they had gotten of the school. Cole could be sighted trying to keep two squabbling kids apart. Nelson was being covered up by all the taller kids and Toni looked like she wanted to jump off a cliff. Jay and Kai were clearly bickering in the background, Lloyd had snuck his middle finger up behind Nya's head, and Wu wasn't even looking at the camera with his face turned entirely away, observing the scenery. But in the centre of it all was Zane. The tall boy was laughing at his peers, looking entirely relaxed and content and in love with the community they had built. Then underneath in Kai's messy scrawl he had written once last time:

Our Weird Family.

Zane stared at the words. Family. He shakily ran his finger over the picture, taking in the captured moment of all the people he adored so much. He looked up, making eye contact with his friends as they smiled and laughed at the picture, exchanging grins and sending him the same expressions back.

We love you, their eyes seemed to say.

Zane turned back to the scrapbook. Painstakingly made, clearly out of Kai's comfort zone, and full of so much personality. I love you, the boy was trying say through the gift. You're not alone.

While everyone looked through the pages, laughing at the memories and teasing each other, Zane reached for Kai's hand. The other boy startled at the content but let him grasp his fingers tightly. The blonde smiled and squeezed once before letting it go.

Thank you, the squeeze said. I love our weird family too.

NOTE******

Once again I give you a stupidly long special instead of updating! Oopsies! That's just how my monkey brain works I guess!

I hope you enjoyed this silly, sappy, incredibly late Christmas special! It was super fun to write and I couldn't pass up the chance to get these characters into some funny holiday shenanigans. It's actually my birthday tomorrow so I wanted to get this out before that day! I'm super busy with school already and I desperately want some time to eff around in between them lol.

Have a very nice night or day everyone! I really hope you enjoyed!!!!

LuckyBugBooks 🐞

P. S. I used an online website to decide who got who for the Secret Santa!