Cole crossed a bridge and followed another path leading away from the main area of the park. The thick boughs and leaves of the trees surrounding the trails cast the two boys in thick shadow, away from the light of the moon. He turned a corner, and Jay was perplexed to see him head toward what looked like a solemn memorial standing in the middle of a small cemetery. The crooked iron fence stood eerily against the dark silver background of the grass, and the stone graves and memorial stretched ominously above the ground. On the stone structure in the middle of the clearing, Jay read; ‘In honor of those who gave their lives to help the Elemental Masters defend Ninjago from the New Anacondrai—Never Forget’.
   OK. . . Jay arched an eyebrow. This is kind of a weird place to meet a date. He ducked behind a bush overlooking the cemetery. What kind of girl meets their boyfriend in a creepy graveyard?
   Jay watched as Cole slowly walked by the graves, head cast down. He couldn’t see his friend’s face, but something about Cole’s movement struck Jay as. . . sad.   Cole stopped in front of one grave around the end, and knelt in front of it. Jay was beginning to have a bad feeling.
   Cole placed the bouquet before the grave, then bowed his head. Knees on the grass, head down, he sat there, a picture of sorrow. Something about the position triggered something in the back of Jay’s mind—then it hit him.
   Zane’s sacrifice. His memorial. The grief. This was exactly what Cole was emanating! It hit Jay like a kick to the stomach.
   “Dude, I thought you were in love, not in mourning!!” Jay shot up from the behind the bush.
   “AUGH!” Cole leapt to his feet, the blood draining from his face. It soon returned, however, when he realized who was standing there. “Jay—!! You followed me?!”
   “Yeah!” Jay walked through the gate and up to his friend. “You were acting so weird and kept disappearing for hours, I thought you were in love and meeting some girl! This whole time, you were in this graveyard, grieving??”
   Cole’s angry gaze wavered, and he hesitated. Sticking his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, he muttered. “Yeah. I guess.”
   Jay’s shoulders slumped, and his expression switched from indignant and slightly disappointed to concern. His gaze left Cole’s face and to the grave where the flowers sat limply. “ ‘Philip Green; A loyal brother who perished whilst protecting his sister. A hero. Rest in Peace’.” He read. He turned back to Cole. “Did you know him?”
   Cole stared down at the ground, unable to meet his friend’s gaze. “Yeah.”
   “When? I mean, how long did you know him?”
   Cole sighed and sat down the grass, facing the silent grave. Jay sat beside him and waited for his response.
   It took a moment for Cole to find his voice. “Years ago, when I ran away to dance school, I hid out in the Yokai mountain ranges. I was alone for a little bit, until I met three travelers. One of them was Philip, who was traveling with his younger sister. Their parents had been smashed by the Skulkin army in an attack on their village, supposedly on Lord Garmadon’s orders.”
   Jay arched an eyebrow. “Garmadon never ordered anything like that!”
   “Well, I guess if the Skulkins could kidnap Dr. Julien and force him to help them create their vehicles, why not plunder a few villages while they were at it?” Cole shrugged. “Anyway, they were traveling through the mountains to Stixx, to live with their relatives. They were attacked by bandits, but me and the other traveler helped them escape, and then we went through the mountains together.” He smiled softly. “We had some crazy adventures.”
   His smile waned. “It was only a few weeks. . . But it felt like we had been friends for months. Philip was a fun guy, always ready to crack a joke or face danger. I didn’t know them for very long, but that journey with them lead me to Sensei Wu.” He stared down.
   “I owed a lot to him. . . We watched each others’ backs, and we faced some pretty dangerous stuff together. My life changed when I met you guys, but I always believed that Philip and his sister were living happily with their relatives in Stixx. Until. . .” He took a breath. “. . .Until his sister came to me last week and told me he had been smashed in the Anacondrai rebellion.”
   Jay gasped, realization hitting. “Was she the girl Kai met. . .?!”
   “Yeah. We— I left the park when she told me.” Cole left out the little detail that he was currently meeting with Liana every other day at the gym.
   Jay was uncharacteristically quiet. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
   “I—” Cole ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t know. I guess I thought I’d be able to handle it by myself. It—it was such a long time ago. . .It’s been years since I last saw Philip, but now. . .” His voice grew very soft. “. . . I’m never going to see him again.”
   He sat there silently for a moment, then cast Jay a sharp glance. “Don’t tell anyone about this.”
   “Why not? I think everyone would want to know that a friend of yours just passed away and that you’re taking it badly.”
   “I’m not taking it badly!” Cole snapped.
   “Suuurree you aren’t.” Jay rolled his eyes. “Would it really be so hard to tell the others?”
   “YES.”
   “Why??”
   “Because I don’t want them to worry or fuss.” Cole insisted. “It’s bad enough that you know, it’d be really painful for me to tell them. Plus, what good would it do? This is completely unrelated to our lives and won’t affect anyone. I’ll get over it one day.”
   Jay crossed his arms. “Uh, nobody just ‘gets over’ a friend being smashed, Cole.”
   “I don’t care. I’m not telling anyone.”
   Jay huffed in exasperation. “Fine, be like that. If it means that much to you, I won’t tell anyone, either.”
   Cole’s defensive scowl waned. “Thanks, Jay.”
   “Sure.” They sat there in front of the grave for a few minutes, both silent. Then Jay got up and rubbed his rump. “My butt’s sore. Ready to head back to the shop?”
   Cole cast a final glance at the grave, then nodded. “OK.”
   They walked out to a clearing, summoned their elemental dragons, and flew into the night sky together. Something about telling Jay had made Cole feel slightly better, but right now all he wanted to do was to crawl into bed and have a nice, long rest followed by a peaceful morning.
   This, unfortunately, was not to be the case.

You'll find out.