Bidi Bidi Bom Bom 🌹 Cobra Kai [2]

Chapter 109: Adrian's New Friend

The school bus is filled with the sound of scattered conversations held by the students throughout the vehicle. Adrian pays no mind to any of them, however, as he sits alone with music blasting through his earbuds. He turns around when the sound of laughter catches his attention, spotting his cousin Anthony and his obnoxious new friends. 

The Juárez LaRusso boy rolls his eyes and turns back around. His parents and siblings used to drop him off at school but when Anthony started taking the school bus, he asked his parents if he could take the bus too. The reason is mostly that he and Anthony wanted to ride to school together, but Adrian was aware of how crazy his family members' schedules were and thought that this would help them out a bit. 

The two cousins used to sit together until Anthony befriended a certain group of boys. He offered Adrian to hang out with them but Adrian refused, not liking the boys' attitudes one bit. They seem rude and disrespectful and Adrian can tell that they think that that behavior makes them cool. His father always cautioned him to be careful around kids like them.

His mother always advised him to never surround himself with people who make him uncomfortable. "If someone gives off more negative energy than positive, leave them behind. You don't need them dimming your light," she loves to say. His older sisters always emphasize the importance of staying true to oneself and not changing for anyone, and his brother constantly reiterates standing up for himself and others when he needs to. The young boy takes his family's advice to heart.

Their words have helped him choose the people he surrounds himself with. Anthony's friends are definitely not people he wants around him. He wishes his cousin wouldn't be friends with them but he can't force him to drop them. He's ripped out of his thoughts when the commotion in the bus becomes louder, sounding muffled in his occupied ears. He removes one of his earbuds when he sees all the kids on his side of the bus stand up to peer out their windows. He looks through his window upon noticing everyone cackling, curious about what's so amusing.

His eyes immediately fall on a young dark-skinned boy with headphones on as he dances goofily with a rice crispy in his hand. He smiles and shakes his head. The joy is practically radiating off of the new boy. The bus driver suddenly honks his horn, startling the dancing child. He flinches, dropping his snack as he whips around, frightened. When he turns, he instantly notices the busload of kids poking their heads out the windows and laughing at him. Adrian notices how quickly his jovial mood ceases, being replaced by embarrassment.

The new boy removes his headphones before boarding the bus, everybody still cackling at him. As soon as he gets on, a curly-haired blonde boy pipes up, "Nice moves, new kid. What do you call that? The loser limbo?" Adrian rolls his eyes, recognizing Anthony's friend, Zack Thompson's voice. Meanwhile, everyone else laughs. "No, no, no, no, no. I– I think it's called the, uh, I'm-trying-not-to-shit-my-pants dance," Anthony jumps in, causing laughter once again. "Good one, LaRusso!" one of his friends praises him.

Adrian shoots him a scolding look, making Anthony's grin immediately fall before he simply shrugs. The Juárez LaRusso boy shakes his head in disapproval. He looks at the new boy, who wears a downcast facial expression. Adrian feels awful that he has to endure that on his first day of school. 

"Hey, you can sit here if you want," he offers. The new kid's eyes shift to the tan boy. He's shocked that someone is showing him kindness instead of ridiculing him, but he appreciates it. "Thanks," he mutters. Adrian scoots closer to the window, allowing him to sit beside him.

The new boy wears a saddened expression as he slumps in his seat, hearing the group of bullies snickering behind him. This annoys the Salvadoran-Italian boy. "Ignore them. They're so dry that they make fun of other people to try to be funny... And they're not as funny as they think they are," he voices, hoping to make the other boy feel better. The misery doesn't leave his face. "Everyone laughed though," he sadly states. Adrian purses his lips in thought.