The Skate Park - A few hours later
Selena is pulling her car into a parking space when her phone starts ringing. She puts the car in "park" and grabs her phone to answer the call. "Miguelitooo. Did you talk to him yet?" she speaks. "Yeah. I'm not sure it worked, but we'll, uh, see. What about you?" her boyfriend's voice sounds through the rectangular device. "Sam and I gave our best sales pitch but I couldn't tell if he was buying or not, you know? Maybe my mom will have better luck," the girl responds. Rosalía usually obtains results when she works her magic so she has high hopes.
"Well, we did everything we could. But if anyone can convince them, it's definitely her. If this doesn't keep our dojos together, I don't know what will," Miguel voices tiredly. "We have to try everything..." Selena trails off, her eyes flickering up to the windshield. In the distance is Robby skating by himself. The girl's nervousness magnifies as she observes him. "No matter how difficult it may be," she finishes. "Alright," the Diaz boy affirms. Selena gulps as she takes off her seatbelt, preparing herself to get out of the car.
"Hey, um, I'm about to do something kind of scary so, um... I'll talk to you later," she tells her boyfriend. Her words puzzle the boy. "What do you mean 'scary?' Is everything okay?" he inquires, becoming concerned. "Yeah, just... I'm gonna try to talk to Robby," Selena informs him. Miguel's eyebrows raise in surprise. "Oh..." he reacts. He does not like Robby, especially after he betrayed Selena and joined Cobra Kai, but he knows how much he means to his girlfriend. So if she wants to try to reason with the Keene boy, who is he to stop her?
"Yeah..." Selena quietly replies. "Uh... well... I hope it goes well. Seriously," her boyfriend sincerely tells her. A small grateful grin stretches across her face. "Thanks, Miggy," she softly voices, glad he didn't react negatively. "I'll tell you all about it later, okay?" she adds. "Okay," the boy responds. "Bye," the girl bids farewell. "Bye, Sel," Miguel replies before Selena hangs up. With that, she finally climbs out of the vehicle and locks it. She inhales a deep breath as she looks at Robby, who hasn't seen her yet.
Sam wanted to talk to him as well but since the boy is angrier at her, the cousins agreed that Selena should talk to him alone first. So here she is, stepping toward him anxiously with a fast-beating heart. "Robby," she calls out as she approaches. The boy's head snaps to her and he stops skating. He stares at her with parted lips, surprised by her presence. He's secretly delighted that she came to see him but he won't show it. Selena nervously plays with her fingers as she gets closer.
Meanwhile, Robby kicks his skateboard up to grab it and faces his body in the girl's direction. "Um... hi," Selena hesitantly pipes up, not knowing what else to say. "Hi?" Robby greets back in a questioning tone. The two remain quiet for a moment, finding it difficult to strike up a conversation, which is so unlike them. "You know, I looked for you at all your hangout spots after you ran away. Sam and I came here every day hoping to find you," the girl finally mentions. The boy rolls his eyes at the mention of the blue-eyed LaRusso.
"So what do you want?" he flatly asks, avoiding eye contact. Selena is taken aback by his tone, noticing the lack of eye contact. "I–" she chokes out nervously. "I just... I wanted to talk. The last time we saw each other didn't exactly end well," she trails off. Robby slowly nods, looking unamused. "You're gonna try to convince me to go back to Miyagi-Do," he assumes. Selena only gapes at him. When she doesn't respond, he shakes his head and continues. "I made my choice, Sel... Selena," he corrects himself. Using her nickname is too personal.
"It's done," he states, lightly shrugging. "But nothing is ever set. You can still make the right choice. I know you've always beaten yourself up over your past mistakes, but you're a good person. I know that. My parents know that. Your dad knows that," Selena attempts to reason with him. His eyes soften as she's speaking, he can't help but drop the detached facade upon hearing her compassionate words. However, the mention of his father rubs him the wrong way.
"My dad also had a choice, and he chose to become a drunk loser who still hasn't figured out his own life. And now he wants to make up for lost time so he can feel better about himself? It's not gonna happen," he curtly rambles. He refuses to give Johnny that satisfaction. Plus, he knows perfectly well that Rosalía and Selena will always be on Daniel and Miguel's side, who have teamed up with Johnny. He can't be with Rosalía and Selena while being against those three, it just doesn't make sense.
So it's better to distance himself now before they can fully turn their backs on him. It's less painful this way. Selena feels bad for Johnny upon hearing how his son talks about him. She knows it would hurt him to hear him say this. "Trust me, your dad really does care about you. He's trying to change. So is mine... I really wish you could see it," she gently voices. Robby lowers his head, heaving a sigh as he listens. What the girl is saying sounds wonderful but he's more stubborn than a mule. He refuses to get his heart broken because he believed in a fairytale.
"Everyone misses you... And I don't mean just at the dojo. Camila, Xavier, Adrian, Aaliyah... My mom," Selena informs him. Robby's heart clenches as she namedrops her siblings. His eyes involuntarily flicker up to her when she mentions Rosalía. The girl continues, the sentiment clear in her voice, "My mom really misses you. She's worried about you... You don't have to be out here all alone. If you come home, then the family will all be together again... I just want my brother back–"
Without thinking, Robby accidentally explodes. "I'm not a LaRusso or a Juarez. We are not family," he bluntly states, raising his voice. Selena's breath catches in her throat as she freezes, utterly shocked by what she just heard. Robby's fiery eyes piercing into hers make her feel small. The boy eventually looks away, not being able to look into Selena's distraught eyes. Her words were overwhelming him and he just snapped. He doesn't deserve to be considered part of her family and he knows it. He doesn't need to hear the "we're family" speech again.
It only serves as a reminder of why he doesn't deserve the Juarez LaRussos. The "brother" comment triggers a quote from a certain blonde to come to mind. "All they have to do to get what they want is make a puppy dog face and say please." That really is all it ever took for him to give Selena what she wanted. But not today. "I'm sorry, Selena... but we can't always get what we want," he responds in a calm yet stern voice. He's careful not to be harsh with her this time but still makes sure to get his point across.
With that, he skates away, not wanting Selena to see the regret on his face. He feels awful for treating her like that, but he needs her to stop believing there's a chance that he'll come back. The girl stays put, her gaze glued to the now empty space in front of her. Her eyes begin to sting as the tears well up but she quickly blinks them away. Robby has never spoken to her like this before. She never expected him to say such a thing. She thought that he thought of her as his family too, so his words completely shattered her heart.
Remembering that she's standing in the middle of a skate park, she snaps herself out of her thoughts and turns around, trotting to her car. Once she's in the driver's seat, she takes in a big breath before shakily exhaling. A few tears roll down her cheeks as she tries to console herself but to no avail. "Oh, God," she murmurs as she wipes them away.
[[[[[[[[[[]]]]]]]]]]
Reseda
Daniel and Rosalía approach Johnny's apartment door—well, more like Daniel trudges to the door while Rosalía follows close behind to prevent him from turning and running away. Just as Selena had hoped, her mother was able to convince her father to make up with Johnny. The couple stops in front of the door and Daniel heaves a sigh, turning to look at his wife. "Why do I have to be the first to reach out? And did I really need to come to his apartment for this?" he grouchily queries.
"Because it shows great maturity, which he will appreciate. And the sooner you guys work this out, the better. We all know how stubborn y'all are," the woman explains, rolling her eyes. "And yes, it's better to have these kinds of conversations face-to-face, and I'm here to make sure you don't back out... or kill each other," she adds. Her husband stares at her like a child getting scolded by his mother. Rosalía gestures to the door, urging him to knock. Daniel rolls his eyes and turns to the door, raising his fist to knock.
Just as he's about to do it, he slightly lowers his hand and whips around to face his wife, who instantly whisper-yells, "knock!" I knew he'd do this, she thinks. "Can't I just call hi–" the man tries to say before getting cut off. "We're already here. Just knock on the damn door!" his wife urgently whisper-yells again. "But why do I gotta–" Daniel tries again. "Knock," Rosalía commands, glaring into her husband's soul. The man immediately shuts up and obeys, knowing she's not playing around by her tone of voice.
He finally knocks on the door, secretly wishing that Johnny isn't home. However, the door is opened a few seconds later by the man he was hoping to avoid. A polite smile instantly makes its way onto Rosalía's face. "Hey, Johnny," she greets. "Hey..." the blonde returns hesitantly before eyeing the man beside her quizzically. Unbeknownst to the couple, he was just rehearsing what to say to Daniel on the phone not even a minute ago. Rosalía elbows her husband's side, making him speak. "Too late for a pop-in?" he reluctantly asks.
"What do you want?" the blonde questions. "I know we got off on the wrong foot and I'm sorry I snapped at you," the LaRusso man tells him. "Yeah, well, you should be sorry," Johnny immediately answers. He was going to apologize as well, but he's glad that he doesn't have to anymore. Rosalía lightly grins, she can tell that the blonde highly appreciates the apology. His tone and facial expression when responding amuse her. It reminds her of how she would respond when she and Daniel would make up after a fight when they were younger.
"Show him what you brought," she mutters to her husband, sending the blonde a smile. Daniel opens the paper shopping bag in his hand, pulling out a case of Coors Banquets. "Maybe we could hash things out?" he suggests, holding the case up. Rosalía can see Johnny's eyes light up but of course, he tries to hide it. "Yeah, alright," he casually responds before stepping aside to let the pair in. They go to sit on the couch while Johnny goes into the kitchen. The LaRusso man takes two beer bottles and pops the caps off, handing one bottle to his wife.
She takes it and sets it on the coffee table in front of her before grabbing another bottle and placing it on the table in front of the seat she knows Johnny will sit in. Said man walks into the living room with a pack of ham in his hands and stands in front of the couple. He holds the pack toward them and pulls the top flap back. "Ham?" he offers. He tilts the pack sideways, causing water to pour onto the carpet. The couple grimaces. "Uh– no, thank you," Rosalía replies. "Uh– Uh, n-no. No, I'm, I'm... I'm good," Daniel says at the same time.
The blonde takes a slice of ham, tosses the pack onto the table, and grabs his beer before relaxing into the seat behind him. "Suit yourselves," he remarks, plopping the ham into his mouth. Is he not gonna clean the ham juice off the carpet? Rosalía wonders, questioning how he's so unconcerned about that. The three sit there quietly as Johnny simply eats his ham. Daniel awkwardly eyes him before looking at his wife, who looks back just as uncomfortably. At last, she decides to be the first to talk.
"Sooo... let's just put all our cards on the table, yeah? You two have been beefing since high school, which is no news, but you've resolved some issues before so there's no reason to think you can't do that again," she pipes up. There's another brief moment of silence as the two men think about what she said.
Daniel then sighs, leaning his head back on the couch. "Alright, look... I understand how difficult it must be coming to my dojo. She's right, it's no secret we've had our problems. But I think we can agree we have to try and make this thing work," he commences. The woman feels proud that he's making an effort to save his partnership with Johnny. This unity will make the kids stronger and give them a higher chance of beating Cobra Kai. Plus, Rosalía knows how much Selena would love to learn from Johnny.
"So for the kids' sake, I think... that it's time that you officially join Miyagi-Do," the LaRusso man concludes. Rosalía swears she hears a record scratching as her pride instantly shatters around her. Johnny is obviously not pleased either. "Daniel," the woman pointedly voices at the same time that the blonde begins speaking. "Wait, what? Why the hell should I join your dojo??" he asks, offended by the suggestion. "Because the more we fight with each other, the harder it is on the kids. You join Miyagi-Do, we're all on the same page," Daniel explains.
Oh, my God, how did he expect Johnny to react to this? Rosalía wonders, pinching the bridge of her nose. "And why do I have to be the one to switch? Why can't you join Eagle Fang?" the blonde inquires. Rosalía thinks that that's a fair question. "Ah, come on, Johnny. Miyagi-Do has a rich tradition going back hundreds of years. You started your dojo, what, three weeks ago in a park? I'm pretty sure you came up with the name from this poster," the tan man claims, sparking the other man's anger.
"You know, just 'cause something's been around longer doesn't make it better. Alright? Your dojo doesn't even have a good place to fight," he argues. Rosalía just falls back into the couch, staring up at the ceiling blankly. Not this again, she thinks, not having the energy to deal with this again. She's been tired of their bickering for years. "You complaining about my dojo? It's not costing you a thing," Daniel instantly responds, making Johnny chuckle dryly. "It's always about money," he spits.
"Money? You know what? I haven't mentioned one word about the fact that you're driving around in a stolen car from one of my lots," the LaRusso man irritatedly mentions, leaning forward in his seat now. "Oh, please, the thing's a piece of shit! The radio's busted, the trunk smells like piss. You should go in there," the Lawrence man retaliates. Daniel glares at him as he speaks, offended. A small sardonic laugh leaves his throat. "You know what? You know what? Forget it, forget it. I don't know what I was thinkin'," Daniel finally gives up, annoyed.
He shakes his head. "How is this ever gonna work?" he inquires. Johnny scoots back into his seat until his back meets the cushion behind him, disappointment on his features. "It's not," he answers. Rosalía silently and frustratedly sighs, not believing what she's hearing yet not one bit surprised. She's trying to maintain her composure, however. Daniel sighs as well, also disappointed. He shakes his head once again. He truly wanted this to work but he can barely stand the blonde. "You know, if this is final, then we're gonna have to tell the kids," he mentions.
"We'll tell 'em tomorrow... Rip the Band-Aid off," the blonde responds. Disappointment looms in the air as the two fall silent. Rosalía then releases a loud sigh. Forget being tired, I gotta say something, she thinks. "Y'all sound like you're getting divorced," she sarcastically remarks before shooting up. The attention is now on her as she walks around the coffee table to stand in front of them.
"You two are so dumb. It literally could work if you just gave each other a chance. But you're both too set in your ways to even consider trying things the other sensei's way!" she chastises the men. "Daniel, how can you expect Johnny to give up his style just like that and turn to yours without question? He actually brought up some good points. Just because his approach is different doesn't make it wrong," she goes on. Johnny nods firmly, glad that the woman is on his side. Meanwhile, Daniel just sits there somewhat disconcerted.
"And Johnny, just because Daniel's way is more graceful and less aggressive doesn't mean it's for pansies or some shit," she addresses the blonde. Now it's his turn to feel disconcerted. "Mr. Miyagi was the most badass person ever, he could beat anyone's ass. His family's karate literally created warriors... You guys just need to make a real effort to work together but if you really wanna separate, then go ahead," she continues, shrugging. With that, she exits the apartment with a tired sigh, leaving the men alone to think.
[[[[[[[[[[]]]]]]]]]]
Miyagi-Do Dojo
Sam sits in the backseat of the yellow car, a small frown on her face as she's lost in thought. Selena joyously shuffles around the vehicle toward the driver's side, leaning on the door as she beams at her cousin. "Heyyy, Clamantha," she greets ecstatically as she opens the door and climbs into the driver's seat. "Get in, loser, we're going shopping!" she quotes, holding onto the steering wheel and turning around to look at her cousin, a bright grin on her face. Sam doesn't react.
She only looks at Selena for a second before lowering her gaze and giving a small dull smile. "Yeah, I guess that wasn't as funny as I hoped it would be. It would've made more sense if you were outside of the car," Selena yammers, lightly chuckling. Sam barely smiles once again. "Are you okay?" the Juarez LaRusso girl inquires, noticing how glum her cousin looks. Sam ignores the question. "Do you know if your dad had a chance to connect with Johnny?" she asks instead. Selena notices how she dodged the question but decides not to push her.
"I don't know. He and my mom were both gone by the time I woke up," she answers. The blue-eyed girl merely nods. A genuine grin suddenly forms on her face as she remembers something. "Oh, I have some news," she mentions, gaining the other girl's interest. "What?" she asks. "So Isaac and I talked last night and it turns out that you were right... about him liking me... So I decided to listen to you. You know, 'go for it," Sam shares, doing air quotes. Selena gasps, becoming excited for her cousin. "Oh, my God, really?!" she shrieks.
Sam chuckles, entertained by her reaction. "Yeah. We're going on a date next Friday," she informs, her cousin's enthusiasm making her more ecstatic. "Oh, my God, that's great! I'm so happy for you!" Selena expresses, practically bouncing in her seat. The blue-eyed girl giggles, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. The dark-haired girl then spots Miguel approaching through the windshield, diverting her attention from Sam. "Oh!" she reacts as she puts both hands on the wheel. "Get in, loser, we're taking down Cobra Kai!" she calls out.
Both Sam and Miguel laugh as the boy comes up to the passenger side and opens the door. At least it worked this time, Selena thinks, satisfied that she made them both laugh. Her boyfriend hops in and shuts the door before facing the two girls. He greets Sam before addressing Selena, "You got the key or you need help hot-wiring this thing?" The dark-haired girl giggles at his joke. She's about to reply when she sees Hawk walking toward the dojo. "Hey, Hawk!" she calls. Hawk doesn't turn around. Her eyebrows furrow when she sees the object in his hand.
"Hawk!" Miguel yells. The mohawked boy ignores him, marching toward the backyard with determination in each step. "Was that a sledgehammer?" Selena asks the other two in the vehicle. They all exchange a worried glance before quickly scrambling out of the car. Selena doesn't want to assume the worst about her friend but a sledgehammer is not a good sign, especially considering his past actions.
*Time skip*
Daniel's car pulls up next to Johnny's van, which the blonde is standing against waiting. The couple climbs out of the vehicle. "Hi, Johnny," Rosalía greets the blonde with a polite grin. "Hey," he returns, lightly nodding his head at her. His face hardens a little as his eyes land on Daniel, who approaches the two. "Light traffic today?" he remarks. His wife resists the urge to roll her eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?" the blonde man snaps back. Daniel shakes his head, he doesn't want to start a fight.
"Nothing, I'm just surprised you got here on time, that's all," he responds. "Why wouldn't I be?" Johnny queries, leaning off of the van to step closer to the other man. "Sooner we get this done, the better," he claims. "Whatever. Let's just get on the same page of how we're gonna break it to them," the LaRusso man voices. "Yeah. It's never easy telling your kids that their mommy and daddy are separating," Rosalía jumps in. Daniel rolls his eyes at her joke. "That would make you the mom," Johnny pipes up, pointing at the other man.
Daniel makes a weird face, confused by the comment. Before he could reply, a loud grunt sounds in the distance. The three turn around toward the noise before sharing a puzzled look. They instantly make their way toward the backyard to see what's going on. "Alright, stand back. It's comin' down!" Hawk shouts before tearing down the wooden fence with his sledgehammer. "Hey! What are you doin'?!" Daniel yells as he and the other two adults witness this. The boy eyes the three, straightening his posture.
"You were both right. Talk is cheap. So I'm building a bridge," he acknowledges the senseis. The adults just gape at him, dumbfounded. Demetri comes up behind him holding an iPad. "Uh, more specifically, an Okinawan sparring deck," he announces, showing them the designs on the iPad. "Eli's a design whiz. I looked it over and the physics check out," he explains. Rosalía's face lights up, impressed. The LaRusso cousins and Miguel walk over.
"Mr. Miyagi just used this area for extra storage, but a new deck would mean a lot more room for training," Selena speaks up. "We're all gonna help build it," Sam adds. "Assuming our senseis approve?" Miguel pipes up. The three teens gaze at the senseis hopefully. The adults glance around, seeing everyone working together without any conflicts. Rosalía turns to the men, giving them a look that says, you see? The senseis look at each other and the woman can see on their faces how their students have inspired them.
"Sounds good to me," Daniel opines. Johnny slightly nods. "Yeah... Sounds awesome," he responds, turning his head back to look at the kids. Miguel and the cousins gleam, happy that their senseis are on board. "Guess no one's divorcing any time soon after all," Rosalía comments, making her husband chuckle. He sets his hand on the small of her back as they walk forward to join everyone. Johnny goes straight to Miguel and the two high-five each other.
Xavier jogs over while the married couple approaches the cousins, and they all embrace in a group hug. Selena then jogs up to Johnny to give him a high-five before getting to work. A new wave of hope washes in as everyone works together to build the deck. Perhaps this partnership will work out after all. Maybe now they have a high chance of winning.
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My first post of 2023, Woop Woop! 🙌