Update: 7/10/12 - Sorry for posting again. I just wanted to fix some small mistakes.

Right, I'm not sure if anyone is still on the Karate Kid page but I had planned this 'epilogue' two years ago. I just never got round to writing it. Then, TKK 2010 started playing again on my TV recently and I couldn't resist giving my favourite Bully Boy a proper ending. He deserves some love and so does this pairing. I'm planning to write another TKK fanfic with Cheng x Mei Ying, Dre, Harry and the gang which would take place in the future once they turn fourteen but I would only post it after I finish my last high school exam (woot woot) since I would have all the time to focus on writing and doing whatever the hell I want by then. Okay, on with the story!

Another Chance

If there be one moment in her life in which Mei Ying was proud of Cheng, it would be tonight. It seemed as if a dent to his ego was the best way to jolt a realization in him that just because he had a higher advantage compared to others when it came to combatting skills, that in no way gave him any justifiable right to put people down, torment them and in short, act as an all round jerk.

Breaths were held among the people in the crowd, each and every person transfixed by Dre Parker as he got up on one good leg after his other knee had been battered again, this time by Cheng. The African-American boy was determined and never looked like giving up - that was for sure - but the new state of calmness his countenance had adopted surprised, if not confused many in the audience. He continued to baffle the spectators, his opponent included, by lifting one of his knees and both his arms, assuming a crane-like stance. He slowly moved his head sideways.

Nobody spoke. Nobody moved. All eyes were on the boy in white, who was unexpectedly causing his opponent to mimmick his move. Mr. Han felt a tingle of familiarity at the back of his mind, as if Dre's actions were reminding him of something. What was it? As Cheng began to mirror Dre's head motions, memories rushed back at the maintenance man with full force.

The Wu Dang mountains, the birthplace of Kung Fu, the lady and the snake! That was it! Amazingly, Dre had without realizing it, mastered that skill without any training. He had gained a complete state of peace in his mind on the spot, with no practice whatsoever. Mr. Han looked on incredulously at his apprentice. Really, it was a miracle.

The next event passed by in silence with the exception of Master Li breaking it by yelling at his student and Cheng screaming in anger as he made to finish Dre. Then, another miracle happened. Dre jumped up, somersaulted and landed a swift kick to Cheng's face. Cheng fell to the floor and the crowd erupted into cheers and hoots as the new boy made a huge comeback by defeating Master Li's strongest dragon.

Mei Ying was cheering for Dre with all her might despite being drowned out by the crowd's noise. She did however notice Cheng push himself up, his hand still on his cheek, but he had ceased his whimpering for fear of further staining his pride. Yes, the big bully who had demanded respect by instilling fear in other kids and had acted as her 'bodyguard' before this had been beaten by the same little boy that he had previously picked on. Mei Ying was in for another shock when she saw the 'bully' take hold of the trophy (that was supposed to be Dre's!) and make his way to Dre.

'Oh, no!' Mei Ying thought as he approached the boy. 'I hope he's not going to start another fight.'

"Hey, what's he doing to my baby?" Mrs Parker voiced Mei Ying's concerns aloud.

But no scuffle started. Cheng was quite civilized for once as he handed the trophy over to Dre and patted him on the back.

'Wow!' Mei Ying thought. 'They're actually being friendly for once.'

She was thoroughly delighted to see the Fighting Dragons led by Cheng move in a line towards Mr. Han and Dre and bow to them, despite leaving Master Li bubbling with fury. After the tournament was over and she had finished congratulating Dre, Mei Ying moved towards Cheng who was still donning his red kung fu attire. The boy was clearly tired and upset but there was another thing she noticed in his demeanor. He was humbled and showed no sign of vengeance or anger, just acceptance and perhaps, judging by the way he had put his arm around Dre earlier, a new form of respect for the latter.

He was packing his bags and wiping his face with his towel when he looked up to see her smiling at him, still as pretty as ever. 'She's probably happy that I lost,' Cheng thought bitterly, recalling her lack of comment in his father's car when he was busy bragging about winning and putting Dre in his 'rightful place'. Mei Ying had promised to attend Dre's tournament and support him but her parents were busy with business matters and both were hogging their family transport. So, the Huans had asked for help from Cheng's parents who gladly agreed. And that was how Cheng's car became her ride to the tournament and back home.

"You did well," she said all of a sudden, breaking their awkward silence. He scoffed and smiled ruefully.

"Not as well as I had hoped," he answered curtly as he stuffed his towel into a plastic bag and jammed the pack into his bag. Mei Ying felt slightly taken aback but she bit her tongue to avoid releasing another bout of criticism over his manners. He had obviously learned enough tonight. She touched his arm and he stiffened, not used to her doing so willingly or without contempt.

"I know I may have been...prejudiced towards you in the past," she said. He flinched. "But the way you handled yourself today despite not winning was admirable. I...I'm proud of you, Cheng." She blushed, words of praise for the boy she used to resent feeling foreign on her tongue.

Cheng was confused by her sudden change of attitude towards him. Her dainty hand was still on his arm and he felt himself heating up. This was the first time she had ever said anything nice to him. Dear Mei Ying, his five-year crush was usually yelling at him, running away from him or at the very least giving him cold glares which was to him, the most painful response he could ever receive from her. After all, most of his harsh and immoral actions were for her sake and to protect her. Okay, maybe he was a bit selfish and wanted her all to himself but he figured that there had to be a two-way thing about it.

He didn't know what to say except..."Thank you?" This was very new to him and he didn't want to ruin their new form of acquain - no, friendship. Should he smile back? Or hug her? Or kiss her? Okay, maybe he was overthinking it.

Mei Ying broke him out of his reverie by grabbing his bag and offering to carry it, to which he refused. "It's okay, I can carry it myself."

She let go of his arm and he felt strangely disappointed by it. Cheng's driver was already waiting for them by the entrance and Mei Ying urged him to hurry up. "We have to go, Cheng," she inclined her head towards the aforementioned place where large throngs of people were squeezing through. There was no sign of Dre or Mr. Han anywhere. They must have gone home early.

Together, they made their way towards the driver and hurried out into the cold night air. The driver opened the car door and they both entered, Cheng as always allowing Mei Ying to go in first. On other days, she would scowl at him and not say a word despite his attempt at being a gentleman but tonight, she giggled a "Thank you" to him, making him laugh in return. "Bu ke qi (you're welcome)."

The ride to the Huans' residence took half an hour but Cheng, who was enjoying Mei Ying's company more than usual tonight, felt that it was way too short and he was almost reluctant to see her go even though they were probably going to see each other again in school the next day. During the ride, their conversations did not consist of one-word replies and grunts or glares, as was the norm for them prior to the tournament. It was instead, a very pleasant one, though it wasn't animated like one between two best friends. This one was more like a talk between two friends with a deep mutual respect for each other.

He asked her about her musical interests and she asked him about his next decision in kung fu. He told her that he wanted to quit Master Li's class and his wrong teachings and maybe sign up for another class, one that would not involve feeding on other people's pain and misery.

"I'm happy to hear that," she grinned and he felt as if his heart was going to burst. He would do anything to make her smile like that again.

"Perhaps I should go ask Mr. Han to train me," he meant it as a joke but Mei Ying squeezed his hand with delight, making his face turn pink. He was thankful that she couldn't see him clearly in the dark. "After all, I gotta know where Dre learned his last trick from for future use..."

Mei Ying grumbled with dissatisfaction and he covered it up by adding, "...for the next tournament of course!"

The car halted in front of the Huans' mansion and Mei Ying was about to get out when he pulled her hand back. "May I walk you to your door?" he asked, seemingly embarassed to ask for her permission. He was used to doing whatever he wanted whenever he wanted and taking from others more than giving. Of course, she took note of this and smiled at him. "Sure."

The driver didn't complain as he waited for them, humming to himself to pass the time. He knew of Cheng's feelings for the girl and didn't want to interrupt their private moment.

Mei Ying held Cheng's hand as they walked the short distance towards her front door. Once on the porch, she didn't press the bell immediately as she was apt to whenever her parents weren't with her or when only the servants were around.

"Thank you again, Cheng," she whispered shyly. "For the ride..." A small smile escaped his lips at this. "...and for not following your feelings by hurting Dre. You made me happy."

At the mention of the African American boy's name, Cheng's smile dropped slightly but he had to accept her choice.

What she did next surprised both of them as she pressed the bell, then leaned in and gave him a quick peck on the lips. He didn't have time to react before one of the servants opened the door and Mei Ying, his Mei Ying rushed inside with a mumbled "Goodnight".

Cheng stood there alone for a minute or two before conjuring the biggest ever grin in his life as he returned to his car. The driver refused to comment but was inwardly amused at his employer's son's positive attitude as he entered the vehicle. He would keep it a secret from Cheng's parents for now. The boy would tell them eventually.

As for Cheng aka the former 'bully', he began contemplating his next move. What should he do now? Would being a 'good guy' work out for him in the end? What if he ended up becoming someone else entirely, a stranger of himself? But if being nice was so alien to him, then did that mean he was a monster this whole time? He frowned at the car window, light from the road lamps casting eerie glows on his reflection as the car sped home.

The driver glanced at his rearview mirror and was curious to find Cheng, who was grinning the last time he checked, looking so conflicted as if he was carrying the world's burden on his shoulders. "Xiao Cheng," he said gently. The young kung fu prodigy looked up, resembling a sour puss as he sulked away in annoyance. "Leave me alone," he snapped, but his tone was meek and he didn't turn away.

"Nan hai (boy), is there something wrong?" the driver, Mr. Shan inquired. "You seemed so happy coming back from Ms. Huan's house but now you look like somebody stole your bowl of rice. Do you want to talk about it?"

Cheng refused to answer and sat still for a while, hinting to Mr. Shan that the latter should mind his own business but after some time, he spoke, "Mr. Shan, do you think I'm terrible?"

Mr. Shan didn't know what to say to that. He did treat the boy like his own son but he couldn't deny that Cheng wasn't really known for his kindness. He checked the rearview mirror again and found Cheng staring back at him with a look of…regret, worry, uncertainty? Picking his words carefully, the driver replied, "You're not terrible, but you're not that nice either."

Cheng looked even more distressed.

"But you are brave and confident…and you would always strive to protect your loved ones."

"But am I a monster, Mr. Shan? Does everyone else think of me like that?"

Mr. Shan clicked his tongue and shook his head. This boy was clearly misinformed. "Xiao Cheng, you are not a monster. You were just taught wrongly. The real monster is your teacher, not you."

"But most people don't really like me," Cheng uttered dejectedly. "They fear me."

"Then you know what you should do, nan hai," Mr. Shan smiled. "It's never too late to change."

Cheng didn't answer him or say anything else for the rest of the journey. He was too busy thinking about what Mr. Shan said. Change himself, really? But everybody would like that, wouldn't they? His parents, his friends (he could still show off his skills every now and then without being a prick), Mei Ying…

He knew it was going to be difficult as beating people up was second nature to him after being brainwashed by Master Li with his 'no mercy' philosophy for half his life. Old habits don't die overnight. 'But…' he thought. 'It's not impossible.' After all, Mei Ying had kind of given him the green light by that little kiss just now so maybe he stood a chance after all.

"I could do that…" he mumbled to himself, leaning back against his seat and closing his eyes as his body slowly caved in to sleep. He dreamed of his friends, Dre standing amongst them, then of his parents hugging him and showering him with love, then of Mei Ying and she looked genuinely happy. "I…I'm proud of you, Cheng."

It wasn't going to be easy, giving up his role as the playground's alpha-male but he wanted to take the first step towards becoming a better man and making Mei Ying happy. That is not to say that he would give up beating up any idiot that tried to challenge him or hurt Mei Ying, just that he would rather use more of his conscience over his fist the next time.

And he was surprised to find that he kind of liked the idea of change.

~talking-hat~