𝐒𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑! ━ cobra kai

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐈𝐗 : (not so) sweet sixteen

𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓 : 3.9k

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𝐊𝐘𝐋𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐔𝐆𝐋𝐘 𝐀𝐒 𝐅𝐔𝐂𝐊 𝐉𝐄𝐄𝐏 never really crossed Gwen's mind, but after ending up in its cramped backseat, she was fairly certain that she must have missed a Hazardous Waste sign on the bumper. Gwen and Moon were being slowly crushed against the Jeep's doors by a very sweaty Brucks, who had called dibs on the most undesirable seat in the car: the middle seat — for obvious reasons, of course. Yasmine had only avoided this tragic fate because it was her birthday... lucky bitch.

Yasmine's birthday was actually the whole reason they were all in a car together in the first place. She had planned some huge rager by the lake that evening in order to ring in her Sweet Sixteen. It was going to be a perfect night — if they even made it there in one piece. The combination of noxious fumes and Kyler's treacherous driving had Gwen questioning if she was going to have to spend Yasmine's birthday in an ER somewhere.

The moment they pulled up to the lake and the car was in park, Gwen couldn't get out fast enough. She shoved the door open and clawed her way out into the fresh air. She pulled in a deep breath and let it go in a sigh of relief.

"Finally!" Kyler announced, voicing Gwen's thoughts exactly.

Yasmine giggled. "Your driving sucks, by the way."

"Yeah, and when was the last time you cleaned your car? I'm pretty sure I saw a rat try to untie my shoe at one point," Gwen tacked on, her nose scrunched in disgust.

"Oh, don't worry. I threw all my shit into the trunk when I heard that you ladies were riding with us," Kyler assured her with a smile that was trying really hard to be charming.

But was Gwen impressed? Not in the slightest.

"Wow, and they say chivalry's dead..." she muttered beneath her breath.

"Whatever, dawg," Kyler smirked, completely unbothered. Gwen opened her mouth to berate him further, but was cut off before she could utter another judgmental word.

"No effing way..." Yasmine gasped, her voice threatening to be drowned out by the latest pop hit already booming from the edge of the lake. It appeared as if the party had arrived without them. A whole slew of unfamiliar faces littered the area surrounding the crackling bonfire.

Well, mostly unfamiliar.

The spikey, blue mohawk that stood above the crowd was the focal point in Gwen's mind. This wasn't just any group of party-crashing losers; this was Eli and all of his social outcast friends. Gwen wanted to smother the butterflies that erupted in her stomach at the mere sight of him — a sensation she hadn't experienced since the most hopeless of her middle school crushes.

"Oh, cool! How did all these people get here so early?" Moon chirped, clueless as usual.

"Seriously, Moon? Do these look like people I'd invite?" Yasmine asked with a roll of her eyes. She let out a frustrated sigh and tossed her pin-straight, blonde hair over her shoulder before turning towards the boys. "Kyler, go tell these losers to get out of here."

"Yeah, for sure," Kyler nodded, taking a step towards the party. But a single step was all he took before coming to a complete halt. Gwen's frown deepened as her eyes bounced between the back of his head and the party in front of them. "Wait..." he trailed off with a nervous chuckle.

"Hello? Are you gonna go say something or should I?" Gwen huffed, pushing her way to the front of their little group.

"Um, you know what? Let's just find another spot. Or we could go home or whatever. Y'know what I mean?" Kyler suggested, suddenly riddled with all kinds of anxious energy. If the shifty eyes and fidgeting hands weren't enough of a sign, Kyler's next words confirmed Gwen's suspicion. "I'm just not really feeling this..."