A/N: I just wondered how the show would be if Johnny was married too. This story started from that plot bunny.

A/N: I own nothing. Also, I've only seen the original and Cobra Kai, so things that happened in Part 2 and 3 won't be in this fic unless shown in Cobra Kai. Also, I tried to keep this Teen rated, but if you think I need to make it mature, just let me know.


Chapter 7

"Hi, Ms. Diaz, I'm Kayla Lawrence." She was standing at their door.

"I know who you are," Carmen said, folding her arms across her chest.

"Johnny told me what happened at the dance. I just wanted to see if Miguel is okay and if there is anything we can do," she explained. "Miguel is a great kid."

"Yeah, he is," Carmen agreed. "That's why I want you and especially your husband to stay the hell away from him."

"Excuse me?" Kayla was taken aback.

"Look, no offense, I'm sure you are a nice person, but I don't want Miggie around a man like your husband."

"What do you mean a man like my husband?" Kayla asked confused.

"Violent," Carmen snapped. "I spent my life trying to keep Miguel away from violent men. I'm not fixing to hand him over to one now."

"Wait," Kayla shook her head. "Johnny isn't violent."

"He got Miguel into a fight," Carmen replied.

"No, he didn't. Those boys have been after Miguel for a long time. John is the one who stopped them from beating him up at the mini-mart."

"He's been teaching him to fight."

"In self-defense," Kayla said.

"Oh, and did he give you a black eye in self-defense?"

"That's not how I got the black eye," Kayla tried to explain.

"Oh, let me guess, you walked into a door," Carmen said. "Or, wait, maybe you prefer my favorite excuse that you fell down some stairs?"

Kayla looked at Carmen's scrubs. "No, I prefer the truth that a patient at Ridge Crest Living Center hit me when I was trying to stop her from self-harming."

"You work at Ridge Crest?" Carmen asked, softening slightly. She had heard of the facility and that it was possible Kayla could have been hit by a patient there.

"Yes."

"I didn't know that. I'm sorry if I incorrectly assumed your situation," Carmen apologized without completely letting Johnny off the hook.

"For what it's worth, Johnny was wrong to not get your permission before training Miguel, but he didn't get him in that fight," Kayla said. "I understand that you don't want him taking lessons. I just wanted to make sure that he was okay."

"He's sore but okay," Carmen admitted. "He's more angry with me than anything else."

"I'm glad he's okay. Let us know if we can do anything," Kayla said, turning to leave.

"Do you know who the kids who attacked him are?" Carmen asked. "He won't tell me. I told him that the school would protect him but he's being stubborn."

"I honestly don't," Kayla answered. "However, take it from someone who graduated from West Valley, that school isn't going to do anything to protect a Reseda kid from the Encino Hills kids. Money talks in that place and Reseda kids just fall through the cracks. I wasn't even a Reseda kid and I would not have taken on Hills kids alone. Fortunately, the one time I was in that position, the Cobra Kai boys were there to protect me because the teachers damn sure didn't." In fact, the guidance counselor had told her that if she didn't want people talking about her, she shouldn't hang out with the boys so much. Because Bobby watching her after school while their parents worked constituted her 'hanging out' with boys.

"Thanks for the advice," Carmen nodded.


Kayla was gone when Johnny got home. He didn't really blame her. Hell, it would serve him right if she was with that Ricci guy. He called her.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Kayla," he said, softly.

"What do you want, Johnny?" She sounded hostile.

"I just wanted to know you were okay," he said.

"I'm fine," she sighed. "I'm at Susan's." Susan had been Bobby's fiancee when he died. She and Kayla had remained friends though, even after Susan had gotten married and moved on.

"Are you coming home?"

"Probably not tonight," she answered honestly. "But I will be back. I just need some time."

"Okay," he breathed a sigh of relief. "I can handle that."

She was silent for a minute, then said, "I love you, Johnny."

"I love you, too," he replied. He hung up the phone and then set to work cleaning up all the beer cans and bottles, then the dishes, finally stopping when the whole apartment was spotless. When he was done, he grabbed a Coors and sat down in front of the TV. He looked at the beer, thinking about what Kayla had said when they were fighting. She had said he was drunk all the time. Maybe she was right. He was certainly drunk more than he was sober. He put the beer back in the fridge and went down to the mini-mart to get a soda. He got his soda and went over to the dojo. He sat down in the office and thought about Robby. Maybe teaching him karate wouldn't be the worst thing. He could make sure that Robby didn't get as caught up in it as he had. Besides, it wasn't like karate was the only thing Robby would have going for him like he had. He dialed Robby's number but was too afraid to hit send. Fear did not exist in his dojo so he hit send. Voicemail. Of course.

"Hey, Robby. It's Dad. Call me. Please." He hung up and called Kayla.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Baby," he said. "I know you said you needed some time, but I need to talk to you. It's about Robby."

"How much have you had to drink?" she asked.

"Nothing." He was feeling it but he wasn't going to give in and have a beer.

"Okay," Kayla agreed. "Come pick me up."

Susan lived in Encino Hills so it took him a few minutes to get there, but Kayla was waiting outside. She got in the car.

"Where to?" she asked.

"I'm guessing you don't want to go home," he said.

She shook her head. "I told you that I needed time to think."

"That's fair," he said. He drove out to the beach and parked overlooking the water.

"What's wrong with Robby?" she asked.

"Shannon let him quit school," he said.

"She what?!" Kayla exclaimed. "He's only 16. She would have had to sign for him to quit."

"Apparently she did," he replied. "I called the school board and asked."

"Oh my goodness, why would she do that? I don't understand her."

"Well, I went to see her," he said.

"You did?" She raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"Just about Robby," he said. "Nothing else."

Kayla shook her head. "It's okay. I'm not worried about you and Shannon." It was true. Shannon could make her feel ugly and frumpy and seemed to know just where to stick the knife to cause Kayla the most pain, but Kayla had no doubts that Johnny would never sleep with Shannon again. Not after all the things she had done in the last seven years. "I was just surprised that you went to her instead of the other way around."

"Yeah. Anyway, she says she can't make him go to school or do anything anymore," he said. He took Kayla's hand in his. "I told her I want Robby to come live with us. Would you be okay with that?"

"You know I would. What did she say?"

"She blew up. Told me that I hadn't been there for him and a lot of other stuff. Especially that I didn't get a second chance," he said.

"Why not? She did. She's had so many chances I've lost count," she replied.

"I want to take her to court again," he said. "I want to fight for him. He needs somebody to."

"Whatever you need," Kayla agreed. "You know that I am with you."

"I do." He kissed the back of her hand. "Listen, about this morning, I'm sorry. I didn't mean the things I said, or what I did. I didn't hurt you, did I?"

She shook her head. "No permanent damage. And I'm sorry too. I said things I shouldn't have too."

"But you were pushed to it," he replied. "I wasn't."

"I control me," she said. "I said what I said and I'm sorry for it."

He put his other hand against her cheek. "I love you." He kissed her. "I'm ready for us and Robby to be a family again. But I'm going to need your help. I have to make Cobra Kai a success so we can pay for a good lawyer but I can't do it alone. Will you help me?"

"You remember the one time I tried karate? I kneed you in the groin nearly made you cry," she smiled. Bobby had decided after the pantie incident that it would be a good idea for her to learn enough to defend herself and had made Johnny, then Dutch after she immobilized Johnny, stand in as the attacker while he taught her how to kick.

"Yeah, funny that Bobby forgot to tell you to pull your kicks until I was rolling around on the ground in pain," he chuckled. "You may not know the karate, but you do know about permission slips and medical information and all that stuff."

"Of course I'll help you," she said. "I want my boy back." She kissed him, sliding over so that she was in his lap. "I want my husband back, too."

"You have him," he promised, kissing her and pulling her closer.


Please R and R.