CHAPTER 9
"I don't believe it! You couldn't have done better than me!" Demitri exclaimed later that day. Miguel was trying to help clean the Larusso house but Demitri kept hounding him about his SAT score. "Somewhere, there's an Asian Miguel Diaz and he's really ticked!"
"Demitri, it was 7 measly little percentile points. But I won't hesitate to throw it in your face if you don't leave me alone!"
"Well, everyone still knows I have the superior intellect!" Demitri called after Miguel as they started cleaning the windows. Miguel raised an eyebrow.
"Then why are you using car wax on the window, dumbass?!" Miguel snapped. "Dis is a window. Dis is Windex. Can you say that, little boy?"
"I'm telling you, Miguel, it was a computing error." Demitri snapped. "I'll bet anything."
"About, what? About… 90 bucks?" Miguel joked.
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"Admit it, Miguel. I beat you in gym!" Demitri exclaimed as the two of them walked into History class the next day. Miguel sighed.
"OK. Fine, Demitri. You got your shorts on way faster than me." Miguel remarked, sarcastically.
"All right!" Demitri exclaimed. Miguel rolled his eyes.
"'Course yours have a lot shorter distance to travel." Miguel joked.
"It doesn't matter anyway. I've got this whole SAT thing all figured out. I was just nervous. I lost my stride. But now everything's back to normal. Demitri is back on top."
"Good morning class!" The teacher announced as he entered the room. "Today, we're going to have a little pop quiz."
Demitri's face dropped.
"A… quiz? Uh, B-but, Mr. Jones, I didn't have a chance to study!" Demitri cried.
"That's why they call it a pop quiz, Demitri." Mr. Jones said as he handed everyone a quiz. "Anyway, you know the rules. I'll be in the back listening to the game. Good luck, men."
So the pop quiz started and Miguel started writing immediately. However, Demitri's mind was completely blank. His SAT score ran through his mind and as he looked at Miguel, their futures flashed through his eyes. He saw Miguel as a surgeon, a lawyer, an architect, the president. And he saw himself as a lonely McDonald's worker. Slowly, Demitri's eyes slid towards Miguel's paper and he glanced at Miguel's work until he felt a strong hand on his shoulder. Demitri's heart dropped. It was Mr. Jones…
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"My life is over!" Demitri cried as him and Miguel stood in the principal's office later that day, waiting to be called in. "I'll be expelled. They'll send me away. I'll have to get a jheri curl and a tattoo. I'll be subjected to overcrowding, bad food and daily threats of personal violence!"
"Demitri, I don't think they'll send you to prison for cheating on a test." Miguel said. Demitri shook his head.
"I'm not talking about prison. I'm talking about public school!" Demitri exclaimed, before starting to hyperventilate.
"Would you hold it together, Demitri? Look, man, I'll get you through this." Miguel reassured him.
"But I tried to cheat off your paper. What's in it for you?" Demitri snapped.
"Well, despite all of the digs we make, you are my best friend, man." Miguel replied. "Look, sit down. Here they come. Follow my lead."
The principal and Mr. Jones walked into the office moments later and Miguel smiled at them.
"Dr. T. How are you doing? Hey, how's Carol and the kids?" Miguel asked, trying to butter the man up.
"Oh, fine, Miguel. And the back?" Dr. T asked.
"Oh, a lot better now." Miguel replied. "Hey, I love what you've done with the office!"
"Well… thank you." Dr. T smiled, before turning to Demitri. "Now, Demitri, I, uh… must say I'm surprised to see you. What is this all about, Mr. Jones?"
"All I know is this…" Mr. Jones stated. "I went through four years of school on a football scholarship and graduated with honors, so I know a thing or two about cheating."
"Look, Mr. Jones, are you familiar with the sports injury Cerebrospinal Refrectionation?" Miguel asked, lying through his teeth. Mr. Jones scoffed.
"Sure. I mean… isn't everyone?" Mr. Jones remarked, even though he had no idea what Miguel was talking about. Of course he didn't. It was a made-up injury.
"Well, then you are familiar with how Refrectionation constrains the range of motion of the upper neck."
"Ahem. Uh… Sure. Yeah, that's it. That's one symptom, yes." Mr. Jones stammered.
"Then you know that a Refrectionation is often brought on by some form of stress and it manifests itself in a compulsive craning of the neck." Miguel lied. "Oh, Demitri, you look like you have one coming on now! You don't happen to be feeling any stress now, do you?!"
"No, I… OWW!" Demitri exclaimed as Miguel slapped him in the back of the head. Demitri realised Miguel's lie and he grabbed his neck. "Y-yes, I think I feel it comin' on."
"Demitri, I'm surprised you didn't come to me sooner." Mr. Jones said.
"He's probably a little embarrassed, Mr. Jones. I mean, as you can see, he looks like a complete idiot." Miguel remarked as he pointed at Demitri, who was craning his neck wildly.
"Well, that's… very true." Mr. Jones admitted. "You know, I-I think there seems to be just a big misunderstanding here. Dr. Thorvald, there is no cheating going on here. This is obviously a case of Cerebrospinal… uh… whatever he said. You're dismissed, boys."
Miguel and Demitri nodded and stood up, walking towards the door. When they were about to leave the room, Demitri turned to Miguel.
"Miguel, you did it! You got me out of cheating! Yes!" Demitri exclaimed, oblivious to the teachers at the back of the room. Miguel put his head in his hands and turned back to the angry teachers…
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That night, Miguel and Demitri had finished receiving an earful from the teachers, an earful from their parents, so Miguel headed over to the Larusso house. The back door was, as always, unlocked, so he walked into the empty house. It was 9 at night so no one was in the living room so he headed up to Sam's room. He knocked on the door and entered, to see Sam scrambling to cover some papers on her desk. Miguel raised an eyebrow.
"Wow, Sam, do I even want to know what you were drawing?" Miguel asked, laughing. Sam blushed.
"It doesn't matter." She murmured.
"Come on. What is it? Is it something dirty?" Miguel asked, eagerly. Sam shook her head and giggled.
"No, it's not something dirty." She responded.
"Is it an insult towards anyone?" Miguel asked.
"No." Sam shook her head.
"I'm quickly losing interest." Miguel joked. "Nah, I'm kidding. What is it? Come on! Show me! Show me!"
"OK, fine." Sam muttered. "You know how I want to be an architect after high school?"
"Yeah, sure." Miguel nodded.
"Well, just for fun, I tried drawing a rough design of plans for a skyscraper." Sam explained. Miguel raised an eyebrow.
"Ooh, I've gotta see this." Miguel stated. Sam slowly pulled the massive piece of paper out of where she hid it, and she unravelled the roll. When Miguel looked at it, his eyes widened. It was absolutely gorgeous. Sam had thought of everything. It was like nothing Miguel had ever seen before. And little did they know that in fifteen years, Sam and Miguel would take their kids to Spokane and point out a skyscraper. That skyscraper was the first building Sam had ever designed, and that night in Sam's room was the first time Sam had shown anyone her first drawing of it.
"Wow." Miguel murmured. "Sam, this is amazing."
"Thanks." She smiled. "It's not like it'll come to anything though."
"I don't know." Miguel shook his head. "You're definitely going places, Sam. You're really good."
"Thanks, Miguel." She replied. "Anyways, can I help you with something?"
Miguel took a deep breath.
"I came to talk to you." He started. "About our argument back in August."
Sam's face dropped. The Cobra Kai vs. Miyagi-Do was the one taboo topic that the 6 rebels never talked about. They didn't want to ruin the team morale that they had worked so hard to build by splitting the group in two because of the argument.
"Miguel, we don't have to talk about this." Sam stammered. Miguel shook his head furiously.
"No, we do. I owe you a long overdue apology." Miguel stated. "I was an absolute jackass to you. I was too blind to realise that there are two sides to every story, and the story didn't even have anything to do with our relationship. I blamed you for things you simply didn't do. I did what I did last time, and what I've been doing my entire life and I wrecked something that could've been great. I'm not asking to get back together. Quite frankly, I don't deserve someone like you, Sam. You're kind. You're sweet. You're smart. You're funny. You have a light inside of you that brightens the world, and a smile so infectious that it captures the heart of anyone lucky enough to see it. You're way more than I ever deserved, and in case I haven't said it before, I want to thank you for making me so happy for those 6 months we dated, and then for staying by my side during my recovery. I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for your kindness and your patience. I'm so sorry for what I did. I'm so sorry." Miguel's voice, filled with remorse and regret, cracked by this point. He was dangerously close to tears. What he had put Sam through was absolutely horrific, and his heart throbbed in pain every time he thought about it. It was a constant pain that seared on his chest and something he saw whenever he looked in the mirror. "All I'm asking is that maybe would we be able to get a fresh start?"
Samantha smiled and nodded, holding out a hand.
"Samantha Larusso. Nice to meet you." Samantha said. Miguel smiled faintly and shook it.
"Miguel Diaz." He replied. "You know, I have a friend named Samantha, and she's like the best person I know."
Samantha laughed and nodded.
"Yeah, I think I know her actually. I hear she's really hot too." Samantha joked. Miguel chuckled. He was so glad that they had sorted out their issues. He was on the long road for redemption. He had treated her horribly and he needed to atone for it.