𝐆𝐎𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐍

ten

this is quite a lengthy chapter. Enjoy :)

『 ten 』

MIGUEL STOOD ON THE FRONT lawn with the rest of the dojo. He was punching the air repeatedly, both warming up and blowing off steam. He was in a rotten mood that morning. 

"Chill, dude. Save some for the tournament," Hawk said. Miguel gave him the side eye and continued punching. 

Aisha hit his arm. "Don't bother. He's been in a terrible mood since the breakup."

"Where's Sensei?" Hawk asked, looking across the crowded parking lot. "He should be here by now."

"He'll show up," Natalie muttered, checking her nails in a bored tone. She was sitting on the grass between where Hawk and Aisha stood. 

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Bert told her. 

Aisha narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

Bert scuffed his feet awkwardly on the ground. "I saw him last night at the mini mall," he explained. "I was buying... a carton of milk when I heard him yelling outside. He was shouting about some kid and how we're all gonna die. He didn't look good."

"Why didn't you tell us this before?" Aisha demanded. Natalie looked up at them, rubbing her forehead. 

"I don't know! I guess I'm just so used to seeing him drunk, it didn't seem like a big deal."

"Well we're here, and Sensei's not," Hawk told him. "So it's officially a big deal!"

Natalie stood up, brushing the dry grass off her butt and legs. "I'm sure he's just late. Slept in or something. What could've happened?"

"I don't know! Maybe he drove his car off a cliff, or bought a gun and blew his brains out!" Hawk shouted. 

"No, Sensei would never kill himself. That's too pussy a move," Aisha muttered. Finally, Miguel ceased punching to pay attention to the conversation. 

Hawk rolled his eyes. "Whatever. We'll just have to do it without him."

"Do what without me?" Sensei Lawrence asked, walking up to them with his bag slung over shoulder. He looked just as fine as ever. 

"Sensei!" Aisha exclaimed, surprised he was walking. 

"We didn't think you would show up," Hawk admitted. 

He joined his dojo, exchanging looks with Miguel. "You didn't seriously think I was gonna miss this thing, did you? I may not always win, but I never back out of a fight."

"Great," Miguel said, scowling impatiently. "Let's sign up."

"Not yet," Sensei Lawrence told them, rounding the other students up. "There's still one more lesson I need to teach you."

"I've taught you to strike first. I've taught you not to be losers, not to be pussies," Sensei Lawrence told the dojo. 

He had gotten them all to circle up in the middle of the entryway. People passed all around them, some stopping by for a moment to listen to the wise words of the Cobra Kai sensei. Natalie prayed her parents wouldn't come in and seek her out now. 

"I've taught you to strike hard, to concentrate your power behind everything you do. But I haven't taught you the third rule of Cobra Kai. No mercy," he said. "As you get older, you're going to realize that life isn't fair. You wake up one morning feeling great, and then life sends a spinning heel kick to your balls, or takes a steaming shit in your mouth. You fail a test. You get suspended. You fall in love with a girl, then some other dude comes along and steals her from you. Your car gets set on fire. This is life! It shows no mercy! So neither do we."