𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐘 ― e. moskowitz / hawk [ COMPLETED UNTIL SEASON SIX PART TWO ]

xxviii

╔.𖥸. .════════════════╗

𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗬

chapter twenty-eight
but you were everything
to me, I was begging you,
please don't go

╚════════════════. .❀.╝

ALYSSA WOULD BE lying if she said she was shocked to see Eli sitting on the steps of her front porch.

She doesn't want to sound conceited, she really doesn't, but she knew that he would come to her. Growing up, they were each other's safe spaces. They would always go to each other when something was wrong. When Cobra Kai came around, those safe spaces gradually faded away, but it came right back the second after Eli left.

Opening her car door, Alyssa got out with a frown. Eli had his hood up still, his jacket wrapped around him like a shield. Underneath her porch light, she could still see the tear tracks illuminated on his face. Some were brighter, obviously more fresh, while others were dull. She locked her car behind her and walked up her driveway, her heart breaking more with each step she took towards him.

Alyssa slowed to a stop, standing above him. Eli didn't look up, but she knew that he acknowledged her presence. Without saying anything, she held her hands out to him as an invitation. He reached forwards and took them, standing up as well. She held onto his hands tightly as she stared up at his face that was now covered by shadows from the movement. Her frown deepened. Eli wasn't even looking at her. His gaze was focused on the ground.

There was a reason why he wasn't looking at her. It would cause him to break down completely again and remind him exactly what he had to lose. Cobra Kai had stripped away his identity, and losing Alyssa again was the worst possible thing. But as her hands squeezed his, not daring to let go, he knew he wasn't deserving of her kindness and warmth. He just didn't know where to go. Like always, every road led to her.

He had stopped home first, though. The thought of what he was about to do killed him inside, and he didn't want to be alone. So a pair of clippers sat in his pocket, weighing him down.

"Can you help me?" Eli asked her quietly. "I need . . . I need to fix this."

"Of course," Alyssa agreed instantly, already knowing what he meant.

Eli let go of her hands, as much as neither of them wanted to. Alyssa stared at him for a moment longer before walking up her porch. She unlocked her door and opened it. Eli came in after her, and as she shut and locked her door again, he took off his shoes and left them by the front. Alyssa did so as well and flicked on lights as she went further into the house, dropping her car keys on the counter.

The house was quiet. Her mom was at work, and evidently, Jackson was somewhere else. Maybe it was better that way. Alyssa had an inkling that Eli probably didn't want to be around a lot of people right now.