GOOD HEART, BAD TEMPER - keene, robby

thirty-seven

"So they stole all your clothes?" Robby asks.

"I can't take anymore of their crap. I'm ready to use my training!" Kenny says angrily.

"And what do you think you're gonna do?" Robby asks.

"I'll do what you do." Kenny tells him. "Kick their asses."

"I got kicked out of school and landed in juvie." Robby informs the teen as he continues to violently hit the punching dummy. "Come on. You gotta be smarter than me and your brother."

"Well, I gotta do something." Kenny says.

"Believe it or not, Payne. But the same thing happened to me." Rory informs the kid.

"Really? Who stole your clothes?" Kenny asks.

Rory smirks before glancing at Robby. "Gross! I did not need to know that."

"Class, fall in." Kreese orders. "Today we have a very important lesson, don't we, Sensei Silver?"

"Yes, we do." he says. "Weakness."

"Your opponent's weakness must be exploited whenever possible." Kreese tells the class.

"At the tournament, you'll have to recognize that weakness." Silver adds on. "And make no mistake, we all have one."

"Sensei Kreese doesn't." Tory speaks up.

"Of course he does. We all do." Silver tells the girl. "And today, your goal is to find your opponent's weakness and attack it. No points. You hit the mat, you lose. You got it? Alright, prepare for combat."

The students go to sit on the side. "What's my weakness?" Rory asks her friend.

"I don't know." Tory looks away from her.

"Yes, you do. Tell me." Rory says.

Tory takes a deep breath. "Don't take this the wrong way, but your Dad."

Rory's eyebrows furrow. "What does that have to do with my fighting."

"Well, sometimes, when we're training, it's noticeable you get flashbacks of your dad and you kind of space out, giving your enemy an open shot." Tory explains.

"Oh..." Rory looks down. "How do I overcome that?"

"I have no idea." Tory tells her.

|

Everyone had fought and it was down to the last round. The students sat silently, waiting for someone to be called on.

"Sommers." Silver called on her and the girl quickly stood up and made her way over to him.

"Keene." Kreese called on the boy, and multiple "ooh's" went around the class as the couple had to go against each other.

"You've trained with Keene before. What's his weakness?" Silver asks.

"Me. Obviously." Rory tells him.

Silver laughs a bit. "When you two get out on that mat, you're not lovers. You're enemies. You really think you're going to be his weakness?"

"I do." Rory nods. "He can't hurt me. Even for a fight. He's scared to."

"Alright, Ms. Sommers." he nods. "Get out there."

The two teens get out on the mat and take their spots, getting in a fighting stance.

"Ais!" Kreese yells.

Rory charges at the boy, throwing punches that he blocks with Miyagi-Do defense. He goes to kick the girl, but she catches his leg. While he's unable to move, she moves up, grabbing his arm, but he quickly pulls back, pushing the girl away.

Robby uses the distance to his advantage and kicks the girl in the stomach, causing her to groan in pain. He quickly ran to the girl, grabbing her to keep her stable.

"You alright? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you." he tells her.

"Robby," she laughs. "I'm fine. It's part of the lesson."

"Back to your corners." Kreese orders.

Rory shakes off the pain as she walks back over to Silver. "He would never hurt you?"

"You'll see." she smiles.

"Back on the mat!" Silver orders.

The couple walk back over, bowing at each other, and getting back into a fighting stance.

"Ais!" Kreese yells.

Rory quickly throws punches at the guy, but he catches her arm, and elbows her in the stomach.

The brunette quickly curls over in pain as she groans. "Woah— I... Rory are you—"

The girl cuts him off by grabbing his arm, flipping him over on the mat. She pulls her arm up as if she's about to punch him. "Ais!" she yells, landing her fist beside his head.

Silver laughs as he grabs the girl, clapping his hand on her back. "Good work, Sommers!"

She smiles before helping Robby up. "You really gotta stop worrying about me, Keene."

"Never." he smiles at the girl, placing his hand on the back of her neck and kissing her forehead gently. "Not in a million years."

|

"You are definitely a better cook than I am." Rory eats the meal Robby prepared for the two of them.

"I know." he tells her before laughing at her offended gasp. "You said it!"

"You were supposed to agree!" she tells him.

"Sorry, uh— No. What? You're lying. I'm nothing compared to you." he says sarcastically.

"Better." she smiles.

Robby finishes his meal and waits for Rory to finish before grabbing her plate and putting it in the sink. "Wanna shower?"

She smiles before getting up. "Just showering?"

"Well," he grabs her hand, turning her around as he wraps his arms around her waist from behind. "We can definitely do more than just that."

Rory hums as she smiles. "Like what?"

"Sing." he whispers.

"I call Britney Spears this time." Rory turns around quickly.

"No." he tells her. "Do someone else."

"You always get Britney!" Rory tells him.

"Do Taylor Swift!" Robby says. "She's your favorite artist."

"Fine." the girl rolls her eyes. "Let's go."

Robby smiles as he grabs the girl's hand and leads her upstairs. "You can do Britney, babe."

"I know." she tells him.