sweep the heart | cobra kai

fire and ice

The next morning, when Hallie's dad had returned, she left Miguel's apartment. He was still acting a little awkward around her, but she couldn't tell why.

She stepped into her dad's apartment. It was as drab as she remembered it, a picture of a bald eagle staring her in the eyes.

"Dad, this is gross," she grimaced.

"I don't waste my time decorating," he said, grabbing a can of beer from the fridge. "You can take that room in the back."

She stepped past what she assumed was her father's bedroom to a spare room. It had a few cardboard boxes in it.

Her dad followed behind her. "We can clean it up."

They spent the next few hours moving out the old boxes and setting up Hallie's things. She had brought as much as she could from her old apartment. She didn't know if Robby planned to move back when their mom returned, but Hallie definitely didn't. She was done.

Hallie set up her pillows and teddy bear on her mattress. It sat on the floor for now, as they waited for the bed frame they ordered to arrive.

Somehow, even with the lack of decorations, she felt better in her dad's apartment.

An hour later, Hallie's dad drove her to the dojo for karate. He went into his back office while Hallie looked for her friends.

Hawk and Miguel were stretching, chatting amongst themselves. She made her way over to them.

"Hey, Miggy," she smiled, sitting down next to him.

But he just glared at her. Hawk, too.

"What?" She frowned.

"Robby Keene," Hawk said. "We know he's your brother."

Her heart dropped. "...What do you mean?"

"I saw the picture of you two as kids in your dad's apartment last night," said Miguel.

Hallie looked up and sighed, trying to stay calm.

"I can't believe you lied," Hawk scowled. "Guess now I know where you got that from."

"Hawk," she frowned. Why was he being so mean? Sure, she shouldn't have lied. But was it that big of a deal?

"You could've told me," said Miguel.

"You guys, have you seen the commercial?" Before Hallie could respond, Aisha suddenly walked up to them.

They looked at her in confusion.

"Sam's dad started his own dojo and he disses Cobra Kai," she continued, handing Hallie her phone.

Hallie played the YouTube ad. It was Daniel sitting in his dojo, talking to a camera.

"Because at Miyagi-Do, it's not about the money. It's about the karate," he was saying. "Don't be a snake in the grass. Join Miyagi-Do today."

Hallie handed Aisha's phone back.

"What the hell?" Miguel shook his head.

"'Snake in the grass'?" Aisha echoed. "That's us."

"'Not about the money'?" Hallie scoffed. "Easy for him to say that when he's rich."

"Guys, look," said Hawk. They looked around the dojo.

Several other students were watching the ad on their own phones.

"Wait, why are we paying for karate if this guy's giving it away for free?" One of the students was saying to his friend.

"They're gonna leave?" Miguel asked.