you're the best around - (daniel larusso x oc)

ch.22

--playing Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin--

[Daniel parks his car in Reseda with Scarlette in the passenger's seat. He excitedly steps out of his car with his girlfriend, locking it. Daniel jogs out of the car with the key jingling in his pocket, Scarlette competitively tries to get ahead of him- She runs past him, opening the gate. It was officially on. Daniel holds the gate open and rushes past Scarlette to the stairs, but she manages to beat him in the race once again. Daniel pants, Scarlette does the same with her hands on her knees, bent over slightly. Yet she didn't break a sweat, it was a little chilly this winter after all. She stood back up, catching her breath- she smiles at her boyfriend]

"I win again!" [She declares, pointing her finger- she leans against the wall. Daniel laughs and slides his back down the wall beside Scarlette, the sit together]

"You may have won this battle, but I'll win the next." [He challenges]

"Sure you will." [She says sarcastically] "You said that the first day we met.." [She murmurs- Daniel chuckles with the same big smile]

"No seriously, I will!" [Daniel declares, raising his finger back. Scarlette sits back up with a smug expression]

"Not a chance, Larusso." [She stands up, then bends/leans over to his level. Daniel bites his lip and licks his teeth in the corner of his mouth, making his own smug expression. They are an inch from each other's faces and looking into each other's eyes- Daniel puts his hand on her face and kisses her the second time. Suddenly, a car pulls into the parking lot- a sound too familiar to Scarlette. She breaks the kiss and looks behind her to see that it's the exact car she had hypothesized when she first heard it] "Fuck." [She stands up straight and puts her hand out for Daniel to pull him up too. Daniel was a little confused, she was suddenly tense and rushed] "You should go."

"What? Why?" [He says as he is pulled up to stand. He looked over at the car with his hands on his hips, it was definitely familiar but only in a passive way. In other words: who ever owned that car, lives in Reseda, but Daniel doesn't know them]

"I don't want him to have to find out.." [She thinks to herself, her heart beats faster. She clenches her teeth and paces the floor- finding the right thing to say. She doesn't know what to say]

"This is just like when she fought me at the beach.." [He thought, Daniel turns to her-] "It's not Johnny or the other Cobra Kais, is it?" [He asks aloud. Scarlette shakes her head]

"No, no it's not." [She frantically replies with her hands on her head]

"Then who?" [Daniel raises his voice, this all had came out of nowhere]

"Daniel, you should go!" [She loudly demands as she sees the man approach the gate. She inches for her apartment door]

"I'm not leaving if there's something wrong!" [He grabs her by her shoulder, stopping her from entering her apartment]

"I don't want to hurt you again! So, just leave me alone." [She yells as she urgently slams the door in Daniel's face after escaping his grasp. She didn't want to end up fighting Daniel again. As the door is closed, Scarlette puts her back against it, sliding her back down and sitting. She puts her face in her hands]

"What the hell is going on.." [He thought as he put his ear to the door, hearing her cries. He also looks into the window and sees her with her face covered. He clenches his teeth and shakes his head- very confused and concerned] "I just want to help- I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong.." [He says calmly with his hand on the glass window. Scarlette can hear him, she looks out the window back at him, with a shake of her head as she looks behind him. Daniel slowly turns around to see a drunk old man. Daniel flinches]