~ Part 16~ | We Are Not Alone

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** Stand Tall (Julie and the Phantoms)**
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"Whatever happens
Even if I'm the last standing
I'ma stand tall
I'ma stand tall
Whatever happens
Even when everything's down
I'ma stand tall
I'ma stand tall"

~ Julie and the Phantoms

This chapter is dedicated to @dommiewrites hope you're having a nice day!

(comment or PM if you'd like a shoutout!)

******

Lloyd didn't expect the turnout to be so good. At least social media was good for one thing. Gossip and repetitive selfies of Kai.

Lloyd knew he looked like he had everything under control but secretly he was still terrified. But that was okay. Maybe it was okay to be scared. Maybe it just showed how much he cared.

Lloyd stared out at the crowd that had gathered outside of the television station. Many were just arriving. There were many people. No. There were so many different people.

Lloyd glanced at his friends. They looked shocked as they stared at their surroundings. Nya gave a small laugh, tears falling from her eyes as she put an arm on Jay's shoulder to steady herself. Kai met Lloyd's eyes. He nodded to him silently.

Lloyd took a deep breath, turning so that he could face his father. Garmadon's expressionless glare surveyed the group. The reddish gaze slowly raised to meet his. His lips were drawn in a disapproving frown. Maybe past Lloyd might've done something to try and change that. But he's realized that wasn't what he really wanted. He's realized he already has all he's needed.

The camera was pointed at him. All eyes waiting, all ears listening for what he had to say.

This was it.

"You think we need big important people to make a difference," Lloyd spoke loud and clear, hoping and praying his voice didn't waver. He swept an arm to the crowd. "But that's what we already have."

He felt his lips turn upwards as he scanned the faces. "Important people. People capable of making a difference. People working towards a difference."

"We have protestors, activists, moms, dads, parents, guardians, children, teachers, and other amazing people in this world." There was a loud cheer as he continued.

Lloyd took a step forward. His eyes found signs: Black Lives Matter, Stop Asian Hate, Autism Acceptance, feminist groups, flags for so many different people of the lgtbq+ community, and so much more! He saw diversity. He saw faith that the world has changed. But that doesn't mean it doesn't need to keep on changing.

"You may have been able to turn us down before. You may have been able to ignore the petitions, block out the protests, and disregard any cry for a difference. At some point, this has made us feel alone." Lloyd felt tears prick in his own eyes as pride swelled inside him. "But we're not alone."

Lloyd turned back to the camera, smiling a true, bright, beautiful smile. "We're not alone."

Lloyd let out another long breath. "Someone once told me that words have power. So, hear my words," Lloyd felt more confident as he continued. The passion radiating in his tone as he continued talking.

"The world is full of strong, amazing people. People can't fix us. People can't fix what wasn't broken in the first place. And every one of you-" he looked to the crowd. "-are powerful, beautiful, perfectly whole people who do not need to change for their opinions. It's their opinions that need to change."

The people of Ninjago City exploded into sound. Cars lined the streets and people just kept joining in the movement. Every one of them with their own story. The cheers and whistles fuelled him as he stepped back beside his friends.

Nya practically strangled him around the neck, shrieking with the crowd like a maniac. Kai places an arm over his shoulders, looping his second one over Cole. Cole stared into the crowd, his eyes seemed to stray on one particular man. Zane placed a hand on his back and Cole exchanged a smile, the raven-haired boy smirked and pointed out Pixal in the fray. Jay hesitantly brushed his fingers against Nya's, the girl glanced at him and took his hand. Jay's cheeks reddened as their hands twined together.

Lloyd, himself, had never felt better. He just smiled away and hung on to his peers, his friends, and his family. They were all of those things. And he loved it.

*****

"Are you sure the guy said this was okay?" Lloyd said hesitantly.

"Yes!" Nya rolled her eyes and laughed. "Stop worrying! We're all waiting for you!"

Lloyd stuck his tongue out at her and turned toward the wall. Kai came up to him, tossing the spray can with a grin. Lloyd glanced at him in surprise. He would've thought Kai wouldn't approve.

Kai shrugged. "Sometimes you have to write on the wall for people to hear you." Lloyd felt a large grin form at his words.

"What should I write?" Lloyd glanced back at the hundreds of bystanders watching in anticipation.

"How about Brad sucks?" Cole suggested. Jay elbowed him with a snicker.

"Or Cole smells!" Kai put in. Cole hissed and tossed a piece of his doughnut at him.

Nya rolled her eyes as she linked her arm through Jay's. "Do whatever you think, Lloyd." She told him. "It needs to come from you."

Lloyd sighed and chewed on his lip as he thought. The blonde boy stared at the wall and gradually an idea began to form. He shook the canister and pressed the nozzle. The colourful paint blasted through and he started his work. Swirls, shapes, letters, were carefully placed together in harmony. Shadows grew, layers formed, and Lloyd let the world melt away and focused on the art.

When he was all done he stepped back, a collective gasp sounded as they stared at what he had written.

"We're the difference."

Kai gave a low whistle. "Nice."'

"It all goes downhill from here." Lloyd laughed. "We have a lot of work to do." But the world was worth it.

"Don't forget to sign it." Zane reminded him with a smile.

Lloyd bent low, the black line moving in a quick swish. Lloyd cleaned it up and added the small dragon symbol. He stayed crouched there for a moment and stared at the signature. It had been a mask before. An alter ego. But now it felt like it was becoming something bigger. Something powerful. That scared him. But it also made him excited for the future.

Kai came up beside him, frowning at it with the tilt of his head. "Why did you choose The Green Ninja of all names?" Kai scoffed.

Lloyd gave him a mock-glare, bumping him with his shoulder. "Because I'm sneaky and I like green."

"Ha!" Kai burst out. "You're not that sneaky. You'd make a terrible ninja."

Lloyd gasped and clasped a hand over his heart. "How dare you!"

Kai's laughter broke off when Lloyd suddenly tackled him, the smaller boy latching on like a koala and making him stumble.

He cursed and almost fell over. "Lloyd! What the heck?"

"Dogpile!" Jay gave a bounce and fell on top of Kai.

Cole passed his doughnut to Zane. "Dogpile? I'm in!"

Kai's eyes widened. "Wait! Cole, no-"

There was a loud crash as Kai fell over. Nya winced at the pile of limbs and body parts. Kai groaned and muttered, "You all suck." The boys all snickered and didn't move much to Kai's annoyance.

Nya quirked an eyebrow and glanced at her composed friend beside her. "Do you want to get in on this?"

"I'd rather not," Zane said in amusement. He was distracted when he saw Pixal on the other side of the group. She waved shyly at him. Nya nudged the tall boy with her elbow and nodded in the girl's direction.

"You should go to her." Nya encouraged him.

Zane appeared flustered. "I'm not so sure if that's a good idea."

"Why not? You clearly like her. Get to know her, let her fall for you." Nya gave him a warm smile.

Zane hesitated before nodding, Nya took Cole's food from him as Zane wiped his palms on his pants nervously. Zane started to walk but paused and glanced back at Nya.

"Nya," he said.

Nya looked over. "Hm?"

Zane's eyes twinkled. "I'm sure if you asked Jay on a date, he would say yes."

The girl sputtered. "What? That's-"

"Just think about it." Zane waved goodbye before jogging over to where Pixal was waiting. Nya shook her head, turning back to the others so that she could help disentangle them from one another.

Lloyd laughed, accepting Nya's hand up. He stepped away so that Nya could rescue Jay from being tickled to death by Kai and Cole. Lloyd watched his friends, their laughter was infectious and he couldn't stop smiling.

Someone tapped him on the shoulder. Most of the crowd had dispersed but a few stragglers stayed around to talk with them. Lloyd had been expecting some stranger, maybe another parent thanking him but to his surprise, he was face to face with someone all too familiar.

"Mark!" Lloyd blurted in surprise. "Wow, uh, hi."

The young man hadn't changed much since Lloyd had last seen him. He still had the flawless dark mocha skin, dreamy eyes, and the dimple that had spurred Lloyd's heart to skip a beat the day he met him. Lloyd had almost forgotten the feeling, he had long pushed it away when Markus had disappeared from the school, but here it was back again making his heart flutter like butterfly wings.

"Hey, Lloyd." Mark looked nervous. His eyes darted around and he swallowed hard. "Uh, it's been a while."

"Yeah...yeah, it has." Lloyd wasn't sure what to do. He didn't want to freak the guy out by waving his hands around so he just stuffed them in his pockets.

"You're speech was really good." Mark blurted out at last. "I was surprised... you were always very quiet at Darkley's."

Lloyd shrugged. "I talk more when I feel comfortable enough to."

Mark looked embarrassed. "Oh...right. That makes sense."

There was an awkward silence and Lloyd considered the classic "oh look at the time!" until Mark spoke up again.

"I'm sorry about how I reacted...when you-uh- said you liked me," Mark said at last.

Lloyd's eyebrows flew up. He was assuming they'd have an unspoken agreement to avoid that subject but since they were on it...

"It's fine," Lloyd told him. It wasn't really but Lloyd was over it. The action had hurt at the time but at the moment it didn't seem that bad anymore. "I mean, next time you should just tell the guy- or girl- you don't like them instead of leaving the school but I don't really care anymore."

Mark had an odd look on his face. Like he wasn't sure if he should be relieved or not.

"You're right." Mark nodded, taking a deep breath. "The truth is... I did like you."

Lloyd stared at him wide-eyed as the guy continued.

"I hadn't really figured out my sexuality at the time and Darkley's is...well-"

"Homophobic?" Lloyd offered.

Mark gave a sharp laugh. "Yeah. And... it scared me that I liked you. So, instead of talking to you or... just not being a jerk, I ran away. I just... I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry. I'm ashamed and I've regretted it since that day."

Lloyd smiled. It felt good to know why he ran away. It felt good that it wasn't because he was disgusted or something. It was like a weight was being lifted from both their shoulders.

"Thanks, Mark," Lloyd said. "I really appreciate that you told me."

Mark twiddled his fingers, his smile was awkward but genuine. He waited another moment before he finally blurted out what he wanted to say. "I was wondering if you'd be open to starting over... and maybe going on a date with me?"

The word yes was right on the tip of his tongue but Lloyd held it back. He ran through his brain, trying to unscramble this world of confusing thoughts and emotions that were happening right now. As he did, Lloyd came to realize he was saying yes because it was what was expected in a perfect love story. The tiny crush Lloyd still had and held onto also were key factors but the more Lloyd thought the more he figured out what the answer he really needed was.

"I do forgive you," Lloyd started. He picked his words carefully as he spoke them. "And I do... really like you. But I don't think that a relationship is the best thing for me right now."

Mark blinked, taken by surprise. Lloyd continued, his thoughts forming in his mind as he spoke them. "I am only just starting to work out who I am and who I'm meant to be. I think I want to focus on...me for a little bit. So, a relationship just isn't the right call for where I am right now."

Lloyd felt pride in his words but he was still nervous that Mark wasn't going to take it well. To his relief, the other guy looked understanding.

"Of course." Mark took a step away. "Thanks for being truthful. You should do what's good for you. To be perfectly honest maybe that's what I should be doing myself."

Lloyd smiled as his childhood crush began to walk away. "Good luck with that, then."

Mark gave a wave. "You too."

Lloyd let out a long exhale. He felt lighter now... better. Maybe he truly did find himself. Lloyd turned back to his friends. Kai had Cole in a headlock while Nya and Jay had a private little conversation off to the side. Kai noticed Lloyd watching them and gave him a look that said: "You okay?" His eyes flicked to the retreating shape of Mark and narrowed slightly in suspicion.

Lloyd shook his head and smiled as he approached them. "I'm good." He assured Kai. And he was. For the first time in forever, he honestly and truly felt like he was doing good.

And it felt great.

*******

"Lloyd, I swear, if you don't stop squirming I'll stab you in the eye with these scissors."

"I'm not trying to! This chair is really uncomfortable. I feel like Wu got this from some garage sale for free."

"Just sit tight, I only have to do one more piece." There was a snip and Nya stepped back. She surveyed her work before placing down the scissors. "Okay, I'm all done."

Lloyd turned his head, glancing into the mirror as he looked at her handy work. His once bowl-cut reminiscent hairstyle was replaced with Nya's carefully made waves that fell naturally around his face.

"Wow. This is great, Nya!" Lloyd beamed at his reflection.

Nya ruffled his hair fondly. "No problem."

"Are you finally done?" Kai whined. "Can we see it now?"

"Yeah! I want to know if you gave him a mohawk!" Jay chimed in. "That would be awesome!"

Lloyd rolled his eyes and stood, shaking the pieces of cut hair off of his shirt. "It's not a mohawk." He stepped out of the bathroom and faced his friends. They were all waiting in Nya and Lloyd's dorm while she played hairstylist.

"Oooh!" Cole nodded praisingly and placed down his cards. "That looks much better!"

"It's not a mohawk but it looks pretty sweet." Jay agreed. The ginger-haired boy stood up when Nya entered. He shyly kissed her on the cheek. They had only been on a few dates but in their last one Nya finally worked up the courage to kiss Jay. They were in that awkward phase where they knew they were in a relationship but didn't know what do to exactly. Lloyd was confident they'd figure it out. Kai was not but big brother was just salty he lost a bet.

Lloyd pulled on his sweater, the black hoodie was feeling unusually tight around his shoulders and he frowned when the sleeves only reached halfway up his forearm. Kai realized his predicament and snorted loudly.

"Looks like you've had a growth spurt, green-bean." Kai teased.

Lloyd groaned and pulled it off. He frowned at the piece of clothing. It held so many memories, though many of them weren't the best. But he's had the hoodie since he could remember. It was one of his most loved possessions, especially since the boys at Darkley's couldn't destroy the hoodie because he was wearing it all the time.

"I don't have any other sweaters," Lloyd grumbled, rubbing at a spray paint stain on the cloth. "Do you guys have any old hoodies I could use?"

Cole looked the boy up and down. "You may have grown but not enough to fit into any of my sweaters."

Jay sniffed at the armpits of his own hoodie. He recoiled with a disgusted face and put down his arms. That said enough for Lloyd.

The blonde looked to Kai. Kai gave him a look. "Don't touch my stuff."

Nya shoved her brother roughly and went to put away all the things they used to cut his hair. "Zane was helping Wu clean out a few boxes in the attic. It's mostly full of old things from before the school. Maybe there's a sweater or something in here?"

Right on cue the tallest of the group came striding in. Zane plopped a pile of boxes down and stood back to catch his breath. "Can I leave these here for a moment?" Zane asked. "The rest of the hall is already full. I can barely even walk through without hitting one!"

"Sweet! Junk!" Jay cheered. He ran over and halted before the musty cardboard squares, inhaling the smell of aged items with vigour. "Mmm. That's the good stuff."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow as the boy opened the flaps and immediately dug in. Cole reached over from where he was sitting and pulled out a shoehorn.

"What is all this stuff?" Cole inspected the box, he found the label and examined the messy, faded printing. "Uh... this one is kit kats? Wait no- it's knick-knacks."

Jay discovered an old watch and sat back to fiddle around with it while Zane passed a box over to Lloyd.

"Are there any sweaters in this stuff?" Lloyd questioned. He pulled at the yellowed tape and found a bunch of old-fashioned comforters. Ugly prints and everything.

"Uh... here's one labelled tomorrow, whatever that means." Kai tossed a smaller package over, sneezing at all the dust that was rising in the air.

Lloyd opened it up. It didn't seem as old as the other ones but it had very few things inside. Lloyd rooted around, picking through some books and a bottle of some sort of expired hair product. At last, his fingers touched fabric and Lloyd pulled out a green hoodie. It was a nice emerald tone with a zipper down its front and seemed untouched by moths and dust. The blonde boy unzipped it before pulling it on. It slipped on perfectly, feeling practically brand new and fitting like a glove.

"Ooh, nice find!" Nya was the first to see him in it. "And it matches your whole 'green' motif."

Lloyd rolled his eyes but smiled. "I like it! It's pretty comfortable and doesn't smell as bad as all the other junk."

Jay gasped like he had been personally attacked. "It is the scent of wisdom!"

"Smells like an old man to me." Cole tossed some socks and they hit Jay in the face.

"Isn't that what Wu is?" Kai snickered.

A bamboo staff came down and bopped the boy in the head.

"Ow! Seriously, master?" Kai whined and rubbed at his skull. Master Wu appeared pleased with himself but he froze when he caught sight of Lloyd. All colour seemed to drain from his face and he just stared at his nephew like he was an alien.

"Uncle?" Lloyd said tentatively. "Are you okay?"

Kai frowned and squinted at their headmaster. "Maybe he's just shocked by how much better you look with your new haircut?"

Zane gently placed a hand on Wu's arm and back in case he fainted. "Master? Are you alright?" The boy asked in concern. He raised the back of his palm to their teacher's forehead.

Wu shook himself out of his daze and swatted Zane's hand away. "I'm fine, Zane. Just a little dizzy." The old man said hastily. "I must be dehydrated."

Zane backed off and just smiled gently. "Alright. If you are sure. I'll get you some water." He turned and left while Wu just wiped his brow and avoided looking at Lloyd at all costs. When he did his gaze automatically flicked to the hoodie Lloyd wore.

Lloyd frowned and glanced down at the sweater. "Uh... do you want me to take this off?"

Wu shook his head quickly. "No, it is fine. I think I'll just have some rest. Maybe take the day off." He forced a tilt of the lips and began to back out.

Nya gave Wu a hesitant smile. "Okay... just call us if you need anything."

"Of course." The man left swiftly, practically running down the hall.

Kai squinted at the empty doorway. "That was weird."

"Yeah," Cole agreed, closing up the box in his lap. "He looked like he had seen a ghost."

"I'm sure he's just coming down with something." Nya reasoned, helping Jay re-tape his package. "He'll be fine in no time."

Lloyd frowned, a weird feeling stirring but he couldn't place it. He shrugged it off and focused in on his friends. The blonde boy laughed as Jay got his thumb stuck in the tape. But a little thought niggled at the back of his brain.

What illness involved a lack of being able to look at a piece of clothing?

authors note****

Wow. This chapter got really long. But I can't believe I made it to the end of this section!!! Each of the chapters are like their own individual story so every time I finish one I feel so productive lol.

I hope you liked what I did with the book. The big moment for Lloyd was fun to do. I really wanted to include the date night or at least when Jay or Nya asked each other out but that never ended up happening. I planned on placing the 'asking out' scene a lot earlier but I felt like it made the story clunky and doing the whole dating scene would be a bit of chore for me. But I do have the deleted scene posted in my deleted scenes book.

I'm starting to lead into the next chapter, the timeline is a little messed up from the series but when you're making an AU where everything is real life it's bound to happen. I'll try and include as many different aspects from the series as I can but I want to storyline to continue to be smooth. Things like the tournament of elements may be coming in time and I'm excited to include Harumi into this! I'm not doing the whole techy season with the weird love triangle unfortunately. Personally that was my least favourite season and that love triangle is a little triggering for me. I have a thing I like to call 'second-hand guilt' which is like second-hand embarrassment so when they were doing all their stupid mistakes I feel it. I feel it hard. I just- I can't even think about it lol. 😂

Any guesses for what the next chapter will be on? 😏🧐

I hope none of you are too sad I didn't give Mark and Lloyd a romantic relationship. I felt it was crucial for the storyline and it was a good lesson that you don't have to get into a relationship if you're not ready, you know?

Anyways, that's enough talking lol.

I hope you all liked the chapter! Yay me for doing a double update! 😂

LuckBugBooks🐞