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“Okay, so how does this contraption work?” Kai was examining a strange metal helmet with straps and wires stemming from it.
“It basically sends an electric charge that is supposed to reactivate the numbed neurons in your brain or something. Well, theoretically. I don’t remember the administration ever using it to return memories.”
“Is it dangerous?”
“To the Master of Lighting? Huh! Not a chance! We’re gonna need someone on the lookout. Kai, you cover the hall, Nya will stay here to start the machine.”
“Who made you the leader?”
“Kai, do as he says!”
“Okay, okay! I’m just teasing,” he scoffed, leaving the two alone.
“Right, I just need a moment to figure out how this works.” Nya checked a couple of wires, and after a minute or two Jay was strapped into what looked like an electric chair, with the metal helmet sitting on his head.
“Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
He noticed a shade of concern in her eyes. “Hey, it’ll be alright. I’ve survived worse.”
She wanted to say something, maybe wish him good luck, but even if she did find the right words, they would probably get stuck in her throat just like that lump she couldn’t seem to swallow. So, she just nodded and pulled the lever.
The room lit up for a second, and then everything around him went dark.
xXx
“What? Where am I?”
He woke up somewhere that definitely wasn’t the administration, or any other place he knew. It was…weird, a pit of nothingness, but it sure felt familiar, somehow.
‘Jay’
He turned around. In front of him, he saw a blurry blue figure with ink-black hair, the one that used to come to him in his unspoken dreams. Heʼd never seen the face or heard their voice before, but every time something drew him to approach, and every time he reached out for the mystery figure, only for it to dissolve into the vast body of water that suddenly appeared under their feet and swallowed them both. This time, however, the haze was starting to lift, the silhouette was becoming clearer, slowly turning out to be a young woman in a teal blue gi. He didn’t dare come closer out of fear of her disappearing again. Instead, he let her slowly float towards him. When she was a few inches away, her ocean eyes met his, she reached for a chain hanging around his neck and hiding in the folds of his suit. He just about backed away when she shot him a reproachful look. Hesitating a moment, he gave in and let her pull at the chain, revealing half of a yin/yang necklace. All this time, he had no idea what that was, but some unknown force prevented him from ever parting with it. The woman extended the other hand, a small object concealed in her fist. Her fingers slowly uncurled, and his eyes widened as he saw the second half of the pendant resting in her palm. Without thinking, he took his piece and brought it closer to hers, locking them perfectly in one…
Suddenly, he felt the electric current sting his entire body. Like a river, memories of the past flooded his mind, filling the desert of oblivion, sending him down the waterfall of horrors he’d gone through, and drowning in love and happiness that had prevailed against all odds.
A flash of light appeared again, and this time the ocean eyes before him were not a dream.
“Nya..? NYA!” A sob escaped his throat as he threw himself in her arms, clawing at her back. “Nya, I am so sorry!” He sank before her, tears streaming down his face.
“Jay! It worked…It really worked!” She dropped to her knees next to him, cupping his face and showering him with salty kisses.
He placed his hands over her wrists “I don’t believe it. How could I have forgotten you? I can never expect you to forgive me for all I’ve said and done.”
“Shut up, you dummy!”
“I have broken my promise to you.”
“It was not your fault!”
“You don’t understand. The things that I’ve done…The people I’ve… I am not worthy of being a ninja! And I am definitely not worthy of you.”
“Stop that right now! I don’t care what you said or did or didn’t do! Memory or no memory, whether you are Rogue, Walker, Gordon, or Superstar Rocking Jay, I love you! I will always love you!”
His brows jumped up.
“You…you said it back…”
He could hear his heart skip a beat.
“Yeah. I’m sorry it took your 6-year amnesia for me to say it out loud. But I swear, I thought it every time I saw you. And I whispered it every night before I went to sleep. And every time you said it, I wanted to shout it back so that the whole world could hear…I just, didn’t know how to do it yet.” Her eyes that were awkwardly studying the ground a minute ago, travelled up, anxious to see his reaction. A familiar flutter ran through her chest when she saw his open-mouth grin and lovestruck gaze. Oh, her Jay was so back!
He let out a watery laugh as he got to his feet and helped her up. “I will love you forever, Nya. I want you to know that deep down, I never stopped. I tried to convince myself it wasn’t real and only ended up falling for you all over again.”
Nya wrapped her arms around his neck, relishing the sense of his touch, chasing away the thought of how she’d almost forgotten what his embrace felt like. His left hand rested on her waist, his right stroked her hair. He nestled his head on her shoulder, slowly breathing her in, and placed a gentle but lingering kiss right below her ear, one of those that never failed to make her giggle. They eased apart, looking at each other, feeling the sparks between them turn into a flame. Jay scooped her face, brushing her cheek with his thumb. She leaned into his hand, closing her eyes and letting him guide her closer until she could feel his breath on her lips…
“Hey! So how’d it go…okay, I’m gonna head out.” Kai, who just barged in, was now trying to retreat, covering his eyes. “Welcome back, Sparky! We missed you!”