Forbidden Things || Cobra Kai

91 Chemistry Lab

The school day was fairly boring. Hawk walked from class to class like he was supposed to, paid as much attention as he wanted to, and did whatever work was given to him - at least when he could be bothered to.

The start to the new school year had been more than a little difficult for him, not that he would really let it show despite it being a good excuse for his lack of interest in school. However, he thought he'd be stupid to let himself fall behind or have awful grades because that would only land him in trouble with his parents, which was the last thing he needed. So he did the work good enough to be average at worst, never letting his work be anything less than a C. It didn't make it anymore thrilling, though.

Things didn't get interesting until he was walking to chemistry and he remembered who his lab partner was supposed to be.

The thought alone got his heart rate up and put a smile on his face. As a result, he left the Cobras in the dust without another world, finally excited to go to one of his classes despite it being a Monday.

When he arrived at the science lab, his heart swelled when he saw Penelope sitting alone at his table. Her hair was different, which gave him a little shock, and she was as beautiful as ever.

She'd done her eye makeup just as she liked it, dark and gothic; it covered up the purple bags under her eyes, letting her deep brown irises be the star again. Her outfit was hot and his eyes couldn't settle on one part of her to feast on first, roaming her figure as he took everything about her in as if it were the first time he had laid eyes on her. She was still his smiley, happy, gothy Penelope.

Even though the sweet pink hue of her hair that he'd associated with her was gone. There wasn't a streak of it to be seen anywhere, replaced with achromatic waves. It was haunting, but alluring, and drew him in no differently than she had when they first met.

Her side bangs were tied back with a pretty ribbon, exposing her scar to the light. Any and everyone could see it, which was the most startling part of her appearance when he finally saw her after the long morning.

He was thrust back into last year, his past feelings bubbling up from the back of his heart; the insecurity, the fear, the self hatred. It rose like bile in his throat, tainted and bitter and awful. For a moment, he felt like he was going to throw up because he never wanted her to feel all of the pain he felt as a result of being disfigured with a scar.

The thought had crossed his mind a few times since the moment he'd seen the scar, but it wasn't until he saw her sitting in a room full of their peers had it ever made itself known in the forefront of his mind.

She looked unbothered, reading a copy of Coraline as she patiently waited for the teacher to come in and start their class. The murmurs and chatter of the other students appeared to be nothing more than white noise to her as she was completely and utterly lost in the pages. She wore a soft smile as she scanned the page, absorbing each word with a special fondness only a book lover who was also a writer could have.

He walked up to their table, grinning to himself despite how bad he felt for what he was about to do. The last thing he wanted to do was interrupt her enjoyment, but he couldn't help himself.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're the most beautiful girl in the world?" he asked. He came to a stop in front of her and leant on the tabletop with his hands.

She looked up, already beginning to blush. She flashed a quick, nervous, sweet smile at him before trying to hide her flushed cheeks with her book.

The creepy cover didn't bother him, as his attention was mostly on her. The rest of the room disappeared and it was just the two of them for a moment, a single moment where they could just relish each other's company. It wasn't as tranquil or scenic as their other moments at the beach, where he liked to take her to watch the sunset as often as he could and would still like to do that many more times, but it would do.