little bird // r.keene

xix. hand in hand, far away.

"Ow, god that hurts." Hawk winced as Wren held a piece of damp cotton to his eye. It housed a small cut on the tip of his cheek bone which had stopped bleeding but still looked red and Wren insisted this was necessary so it didn't get infected.

"It wouldn't hurt so much if you could just keep still." She huffed, placing a firm hand on his arm to stop him from trying to move. They were sat on the corner of his bed in his room, they had gone to his house after the fight that day at the mall and Wren could see how much it had gotten to Hawk.

"I swear to god, if they ever try that shit again... I'm going to kick the living crap out of them. Sam included, I don't care if she's a girl or not." He rambled, resting his elbows on his knees, hunched forward. Wren just listened, she had known Hawk for long enough to know when he had his mind set on something. Hatred for example. There was no point in trying to smooth his rage, you simply had to wait for him to cool off and only then could you pick up the pieces.

It wasn't a system Wren liked at all but in her mind, they had fought enough and the best way of keeping Hawk from doing anything reckless and potentially getting himself hurt- like he had today, was to keep him close. Which Wren didn't mind at all. She had missed him more than he knew.

Wren's hand trailed up from his arm and gently cupped Hawk's neck, carefully running her thumbs in circles over his skin. "Hey, it's okay... It will all blow over soon enough but for now- just let me take care of you." Wren told him softly and Hawk straightened his back, looking over his shoulder at her. Wren saw, even if it was for a split second, the flicker of a smile played on his lips. "Come here." She whispered and Hawk leaned towards her, hooking his arm around her waist but before they could kiss each other, their lips centimetres apart, Hawk's bedroom door swung open.

"I've brought you kids some snacks... I hope you like black current squash, Wren it was all I had." Mrs Moskowitz beamed, bumping the door open with her elbow as she carried a tray with a plate of cookies and two cups of what Wren presumed was black current squash.
"Mom, how many times have I told you to knock?" Hawk asked in a playful manner, he had always been close with his mom, Wren had known that from the start.

"Well, I just thought you might be hungry..." She said simply as she strolled in, setting the tray on his desk.
"Thank you Mrs Moskowitz, it looks lovely." Wren smiled up at her, her cheeks heating up slightly as Hawk's arm remained around her waist.

"Oh, I like her, Eli." She raised a hand to her mouth but spoke in a low voice, making sure Wren could hear her. Wren smiled down at her lap before glancing back up to his mom. "Why can't you be nice to me, Eli, like Wren?" She asked in a joking manner that made Wren chuckle but Hawk only rolled his eyes.

"Thank you for the snacks, Mrs Mosokowitz." Hawk smirked as she raised her eyebrows, he simply shrugged innocently and Mrs Moskowitz let her eyes slide to Wren, who was trying to guide her laughter- and failing.
"Boys." Wren heard her mutter as she left.

She made sure not to shut the door behind her and Wren fell back on the bed, laughing. Hawk shook his head as he got up to shut the door before leaning his back against it, as if to keep his mother out.
"We should get out of here. I bet it's another 10 minutes before she comes back asking if we want to play card games or watch a rom com." He told Wren, who propped herself up on her elbows to watch as Hawk grabbed his jacket.

"Where should we go?" She asked.
"Anywhere, I don't mind. I just don't want to be here when she eventually finds 'Scrabble'." Wren laughed again at that and rolled over to grab her own jacket and began to pull her shoes on when she had an idea.

"We could- we could go to my place." Hawk paused at that. Wren had always been so territorial about her home life, never giving anything away by accident and now, here she was... Opening a door to him that had been the caus of his burning curiosity towards her for so many months.

"You sure?" He asked, casually, watching her stand from his bed and pull her hair out from under the collar of her jacket.
"Sure. I just figured it's time I should start... You know, opening up I suppose." Hawk didn't tear his eyes from her once as she ran a hand through her tangled hair before slinging her hands in her pockets, then finally turning to look at him.

And when she met his eyes Wren felt like it was the first time, in the longest she could remember, someone was looking at her like there was something in her worth looking at.

Robby kept his head down as he walked down the street, he didn't know why. It would be a lie if he said he wasn't nervous about heading to The Bookshelf at this time of night. The last time he had, he'd found Wren sat on the roof, high as a kite and he had joined her. He wondered what she would be doing when he got there...

He needed to know why she hadn't fought against them at the mall that day. Why instead of protecting her teammates, she had protected Demitri when he needed her most. Why she had tripped her own team and cost them the win.

But deep down, he already knew. She didn't belong at Cobra Kai.
He knew it. Now all he needed to do was convince her the same thing.

He just hoped she knew it too.

He rounded the last corner and spied the shop from afar. The light was on and he could spy Mr James behind the counter talking to a man in a dark jacket on the other side. He couldn't see Wren through the clear view of the window. Technically The Bookshelf was closed so he imagined she was in her room or round the back. Robby was maybe 20 metres away when he saw her from a distance.

She was walking towards the shop, jokingly walking backwards in front of a boy with spiky hair. Hawk. Robby paused in his tracks and watched as, just outside of the shop window, Wren and Hawk also stopped walking for Wren to kiss his cheek before they made their way into the shop.

Robby tore his eyes away. He couldn't move his feet at first, his chest felt heavy and like it was shrinking when he finally urged himself to move. His legs felt stiff with every step as he walked away.

After he had said goodnight to Sam, Robby realised every single word of reassurance he had given her, about him and Wren being 'just friends' had been a twist of the truth.

It was true, in a way, but that wasn't what he wanted. He had wanted her with him at Miyagi-Do. Champion or no champion. Fighting side by side. But seeing them there, hand in hand and smiling. Robby realised that was all but a good dream and nothing more.

Only when he got back to the LaRusso's did he realise something important. Robby would be Wren's if she asked... But now, he knew she would never ask at all.

And it broke his heart.