Bidi Bidi Bom Bom 🌹 Cobra Kai [2]

Chapter 13: How Can She Love Him?

"Wow, really?" Miguel raises his eyebrows, impressed. "Yeah. I guess both sports kind of run in the family. My brother did karate and my sister dances. She's a Laker Girl! My mom was too," the girl shares. She hopes to continue the legacy by becoming a Laker Girl herself one day. As a Lakers fan, Miguel is surprised by the information. "What?? Which one is she?" he asks. Selena giggles at his reaction. "Aaliyah. You can find her on the website," she states. Miguel retrieves his phone and looks up the roster. Aaliyah is the first one on the list. He clicks on her picture and examines her face. "Ohhh, yeah, her! You kind of look alike," he remarks, making the girl giggle.

"Yeah, I get that a lot," she claims. Miguel asks for her mom's name next, curious about her too. "Rosalía Juárez," Selena answers. The boy searches her name on Google. Numerous articles about La Rosalia Dance Company pop up. He clicks on the images tab and swipes through the photos, seeing magazine covers with her face on them. They have headlines like: "Los Angeles Business Women" or "Best Latina-owned businesses." Wow, she's kind of famous, Miguel thinks. He notices how much Selena looks like her mom. She basically looks like the younger version of her. She's gonna age well, he thinks.

"Wow, there are so many articles about her," he comments, making Selena nod. This time he searches her name + Laker Girls. Various photos from the 80s come up, some group photos and some solo photos. He clicks on one image and his eyes slightly widen. Selena could be her twin. He turns the phone around to show the girl. "Yup, that's her," she proudly confirms. Miguel's still processing how similar they look. "You look exactly like her," he remarks. The girl grins at this. Being told that she's like her mom is the biggest compliment she could receive. To her, her mother is the most beautiful woman in the world, inside and out.

"Yeah, everyone says that-'' she gets interrupted by a new voice calling her name. She and Miguel glance up to see Sam coming toward them. "Hey, prima! [cousin]," Selena chirps, smiling at the girl. Sam sends her a small smile but the uncertainty is evident on her face. Miguel is confused as to why Selena called her "prima." He's seen them together around school but never imagined they were related. "Hey... uh, have you seen Yasmine or Moon anywhere?" Sam questions. Selena shakes her head. "No. Why?" she answers. Sam shifts her weight nervously. "I just need to talk to them," she responds. Selena purses her lips. She's aware that those two have been avoiding Sam.

"I haven't seen them but if I do, I'll let you know," she informs her cousin. Sam nods, giving her a small grin. "Okay, thanks. I'll see you later, Sel," she replies. She smiles politely at Miguel before sauntering away. "Bye," Selena calls after her. Miguel turns to her with a skeptical look. Feeling his eyes on her, Selena turns to him. "What?" she asks, seeing his facial expression. "She's your cousin?" he asks, shocked. "Yeah... second cousin, technically," the girl confirms. She knows why he's surprised, everyone is when they find out they're related. Miguel raises his eyebrows. "Wow, you don't look like you'd be related- no offense," he claims, afraid she'll feel offended.

Selena lightly chuckles. "Because she's white?" she asks. Miguel stays quiet for a moment until he finally shrugs. "I didn't want to say it but yeah," he chortles. This emits a laugh from the girl. "Yeah, I know. She's from my dad's side of the family, he's white so..." she explains. It clicks in the boy's mind. "Ohhh, right! I forgot you have the Salvadorian and Italian flag in your bio!" he mentions. By just looking at her, one would assume she's fully Latina. She and Aaliyah totally got their mother's looks. Selena smiles in amusement. It's so funny how shocked he is. "I do! And you have the Ecuadorian flag in yours!" she copies his tone.

"Yes, I do!" Miguel responds with the same energy. They nod at each other, pretending to be exaggeratedly enthusiastic before they start laughing. Selena was excited when she saw the Ecuadorian flag in his Instagram bio, she loves meeting people from different cultures. Most of the Latinos in Los Angeles County that she's seen are Mexican or Central American, so she's happy to now have a South American friend. Miguel was excited about this too. He's relieved to have at least one Latinx friend at this new school, as well as excited to meet someone with a different culture. Their laughter subsides but they don't break their eye contact.

Their smiles gradually fade as they gaze at each other. Selena studies his face, realizing how handsome he is. Miguel admires the girl's features, becoming nervous when he realizes that she hasn't looked away yet. Selena's beginning to feel a bit nervous too and she's not sure why. Becoming aware that she's staring, she finally tears her eyes away. "Um..." she trails off, feeling her face warm up and her heart race. Miguel's snapped out of his trance, shyly switching his gaze to the table in front of him. 

"I should go now. I have practice soon," Selena voices. Miguel swallows hard and nods his head. "Right, yeah... uh, me too. I have to go to the, uh... the dojo," he nervously responds. Selena slowly nods. "Okay..." she whispers. Neither of them moves even though the tension is suffocating. "Bye," Selena finally pipes up, getting up and walking away. "Bye..." Miguel trails off. He releases the breath he was holding when she leaves and shakes his head, beating himself up for being so dorky around her.

[[[[[[[[[[]]]]]]]]]]

Reseda Strip Mall

Johnny enters the liquor store, heading straight for the beer. He was informed that his rent is going up today so now he has to figure out what he's going to do. He opens the door of the cooler and crouches down, sticking his head in and reaching deep inside to find the Coors Banquet. As he's doing this, he hears the door chime, followed by a familiar voice. "You got any red spray paint?" He accidentally hits his head on the rack above him as he gets his head out of the cooler to turn around, seeing exactly who he expected. Daniel LaRusso. "Uh, yeah. Keep it in the back. Otherwise, the kids will steal it," the shopkeeper replies. Johnny straightens up as he observes the dark-haired man.

"I got a little art project. Big canvas, right on Ventura Boulevard," Daniel claims, turning to direct his gaze at Johnny. "Yeah. Uh, watch him for me, will you?" the shopkeeper responds before going to the back. "Yeah, no problem. Thank you," Daniel answers. Johnny looks down for a second before looking back up while Daniel grabs a pack of gum from the counter and examines it. Johnny watches the shopkeeper leave before eyeing Daniel. "What's going on?" he questions, finding it strange that he's here. Daniel's eyes dart to him. "Oh, just checking out the neighborhood," he speaks nonchalantly.

"I was actually considering opening up a dealership on this side of town but..." he continues, pursing his lips and shaking his head. "Now I don't know, man. The rent seems to be going crazy out of control. Frankly, I don't know how you afford it, small business like yours. More- more power to you," he taunts. Johnny just stares at him before looking down sadly, realizing that he must've had something to do with it. The shopkeeper returns so Daniel acknowledges him, "you know, on second thought, I- I don't need the paint, I'm sorry. I'll just take the gum here and, uh, put that guy's beer on my tab."

He takes his wallet out of his jacket pocket and drops some money on the counter. "Looks like he's had a rough day," he adds, taking his gum and looking at Johnny as he speaks. He puts his wallet away and turns around, exiting the small store. He feels satisfied as he returns to his car, successfully having gotten payback for what the blonde did to his billboard. This ought to show him that he can't be pushed around. Johnny watches him leave, disappointment and anger filling his veins. Now because of him, he has to figure out a way to pay the rent for his dojo. How could Lia be in love with him? He wonders.

*Time skip*

Daniel makes his way to the dining table, opening a bottle of wine on the way there. Rosalía approaches at the same time, spotting him. "The 2013," she pipes up as she observes the bottle. "Yeah," Daniel confirms, glancing at the bottle before his eyes land on the woman again. "What's got you in a celebratory mood?" she asks, stopping beside him. Daniel pops the cork off and answers, "I got some payback." He sets the bottle down on the table and walks off to fetch two glasses. His wife is baffled by this. "What do you mean?" she curiously questions. She analyzes Daniel's smirk as he returns to the table, coming to a realization.

"Johnny?" she asks.

-

-

Idk about y'all, but I imagine their sons, especially Xavier, to look exactly like Daniel but with some Latin seasoning. Camila would probably look like a mix of both parents 🤷🏻‍♀️ Also, you just know that family eats good. Salvadoran AND Italian food... 😩🤌