The Cut That Always Bleeds | Cobra Kai

Chapter 6

Miguel was shaking as he watched the clock slowly dwindle. Time seemed to stretch forever as he struggled not to let his arms buckle underneath him.

"Come on, lover boy. You only have ten more seconds. Hold it!" Isabelle encouraged him while she sat on his back. He regretted asking her to help him gain strength, especially since he ended up doing a five-minute plank with her sitting on his back.

"And— done!" she exclaimed, jumping off his back. The second she was off his back, he immediately collapsed.

He groaned into the ground, exhausted from the rigorous training Isabelle was putting him through. They had been training for almost three hours.

Miguel lifted his head slightly off the ground, "Are we done yet?" he whined, wanting to go home and sleep for the next few years.

"Tired already, lover boy?" Isabelle teased him. "Don't worry, the hard part is over. Now, we stretch to make sure your muscles don't get too sore tomorrow. Then we're done."

She offered him a hand up, which he begrudgingly took. Isabelle's phone started to ring. Grabbing the phone, she saw Robby calling her.

"Hey Robby, what's up?"

"Does karate involve chores?" Robby said, clearly frustrated.

"Um—chores? No, not really. I need a bit more context to be able to answer fully. Also, I don't know karate; I only know Ju-jitsu and Taekwondo. Even though similar, they are not the same, especially when it comes to training." Isabelle explained. "But why the sudden question?"

Robby sighed, "Remember how I told you Mr.LaRusso was going to teach me karate? Well, he said we would start training today, but I have been doing a bunch of useless chores. I'm basically his errand boy."

"Well, that's definitely an unconventional way of training, but that doesn't mean it's not training. My old master taught me contortion so that I could become better at jiu-jitsu. Now I'm unbeatable because I can literally untangle myself from my opponents no matter how they grab me."

"I guess you're right. I'm just frustrated right now," he said, taking a deep breath. "Anyway, my break is almost over. I also have more training with Mr.LaRusso after work, so I'll be home late."

Hanging up, Isabelle found Miguel staring at her, questioning.

"Who was that?" he asked.

Isabelle sat beside Miguel and started to do some basic leg stretches, "My friend Robby, you know the guy who was skating with me in the summer?"

"Oh, that guy," Miguel murmured, feeling jealousy course through him. Miguel couldn't help but wonder how close they were or if she liked him. He knew that this other guy obviously liked Isabelle. It was very obvious from how he looked at her because it was the same way he was sure he looked at her. Sometimes, he felt that Isabelle would catch on, yet every time, she was oblivious.

Isabelle giggled at his pouting, "He just joined a karate dojo, and apparently, his sensei used some very unconventional training methods."

"Why not join Cobra Kai?" Miguel asked, confused as to why he wouldn't want to join their dojo.

"Because Cobra Kai isn't for everyone. It's great that it works for you, but it won't be a good fit for everyone," Isabelle calmly explained before getting up. "Anyways, it's almost time for actual training, so we should head out."

~

Training had started, and Isabelle observed the class today. Johny asked her to evaluate each student's skill levels and document them so they had a record of progress, leading to her walking around with a clipboard, furiously writing down notes.