Chapter One: The Kid from Riverside
...
Miguel Diaz, a very skinny fifteen year old Dodgers and Dragon Ball Z fan with braces, placed some plates inside a cupboard, the open moving boxes in his new home right behind him.
Riverside had been his home for years, but it was time to start anew for him.
Carmen spoke. "I got a good feeling about all this Miggy. I already got you registered at your new school."
"Yeah um." Miguel cleared his throat. "That sounds nice." he said sounding pretty unsure of himself.
There was a knock at the door.
Miguel went and answered it.
"Hi there can I help you?" asked Miguel.
The fellow teen cleared his throat. "I uh. Live across the hall and just wanted to introduce myself. Robby Keene." he extended a hand forward that Miguel quickly shook.
Robby was a boy Miguel's age, slightly shorter but much stockier with a clean cut of short hair.
"Oh. Well, I'm Miguel, I just moved into 109."
"Yeah I can see that." Robby smiled looking past Miguel's shoulder and at the moving boxes as Miguel's grandmother waved at him. "You guys settling in okay?" Robby asked after waving back at her.
"We're good," Miguel said. "You go to school around here?"
"Yeah, I go to West Valley. My dad used to go there too, family tradition to cause mayhem in a way."
Miguel chuckled at this. "Cool. My mom just signed me up there."
"Sweet. I'm busy pretty much this whole summer. But whenever I've got the chance I can try to introduce you to some of the people around here."
Miguel shrugged. "Busy with what?"
Robby sighed. "I'm in. Cobra Kai."
"You're in Cobra Kai?" Miguel grinned and laughed in surprise. "That's awesome. I heard all about the tournament and the records. You guys blew up pretty quickly. I think I actually follow you all on Instagram."
Carmen appeared, standing at Miguel's shoulder. "What is, Cobra Kai?"
"It's a karate dojo," explained Robby. "My dad and his old teacher started it up again in the same place it used to be at. It teaches plenty of good things. Discipline, honor, tact. Respect. Helped me a lot and it's only been open for about a day."
Carmen smiled weakly. "We're not interested in any karate thank you."
"Oh it's not dangerous. It's just, very helpful for realistic self defense."
Carmen smiled again to Robby weakly. "Still. Sorry, but we're not interested in that."
Carmen muttered to Miguel in Spanish. "Ayudas a tu Abuela mover los muebles?"
"Si ma." Miguel said before helping his grandmother, Rosa Diaz shift furniture around the house.
Robby smiled awkwardly to Carmen. "Welcome to Reseda."
"It's good to be here." Carmen faked yet another smile.
Robby turned around as Carmen closed the door and checked his phone. "Crap I'm almost late."
Carmen spoke as Miguel now helped his family unpack what was left. "Miggy. Stay as far away from that dojo as possible."
"Ma they're the coolest guys in town I'm sure. They've blown up all over Instagram." said Miguel as he put pots and pans in drawers. "This would be a great way to make some friends."
"Still. Stay away from it, I'm asking you to please. Avoid violence, always."
Miguel nodded. "Yes ma."
...
Robby and Johnny piled out of his old Firebird already in uniform, having parked next to the Cobra Kai dojo, directly on Lankershim Boulevard's sidewalk. The entire dojo had been replicated to its original form from the late 70s and 80s it might as well have never closed from how faithfully it was revitalized.
Johnny walked in after bowing past the door and immediately all the students stretching on the mat stood up when seeing him. "Tiny family thing, sorry. Fall in guys." said Johnny.
All of the Cobra Kai students except for one besides Robby wore normal clothing instead of a white GI with a Cobra on its back. Robby was wearing a proud green belt tied around his waist.
John Kreese was standing in the same sleeveless black uniform Johnny wore on the mat of the original Cobra Kai dojo revitalized on the corner of Lankershim and Magnolia. Silently watching everything from his statue-like spot on the mat.
"Our doors have only reopened for two days. So our new champion, will be walking you through dojo etiquette and code as we begin class. Ait!" yelled Johnny.
The sixteen teenagers on the mat all broke out into four perfect rows of four and all knelt onto their shins.
"Mr. Schwarber!"
"Yes Sensei!" responded one of them on the right most corner of the mat.
"Proceed."
In the same spot where Cobra Kai was born, on the very same white colored mats, multiple people knelt on their shins wearing normal clothing.
Most were teenagers. Some were people who clearly had never had a karate class.
The only people standing in Cobra Kai uniforms were John Kreese, and Johnny Lawrence as the instructors, and the only ones as students were Robby Keene and the champion Johnny had mentioned. Who had responded to his Sensei by standing up quickly with a tiny cloth slipping sound from his GI, and bowed.
Wearing Johnny's headband, he began to walk along the lines, Johnny and Kreese observing before he began to speak firmly and loudly, but still not yelling.
"For those of you who don't know, which should be very few of you considering all the talk. My name is Lucas Mills Schwarber. I trained under the karate of both Cobra Kai and Miyagi-Do for about a year before competing in the All Valley a few weeks ago. I am responsible for successfully reuniting Sensei Lawrence and Mr. Kreese. And I am proudly one of the reasons why this dojo has returned. But I have to make a few things clear."
"You have all been drawn here for mostly the same reason. You probably heard of my accomplishment of making national competitive martial arts history. Either on Youtube, or Instagram. Or elsewhere, breaking every record but one in All Valley history can do that. But let me explain something."
Lucas continued to speak, walking slowly through the lines of Cobras like Kreese used to, even as just a blue belt. "There is only one thing that must draw you to this dojo. And it's not the trophy I've framed by the dojo entrance. It's nothing material. The only thing in this dojo that matters. Is that."
Everyone in the room looked at what Lucas pointed.
It was a scroll written in Korean calligraphy hung on a wall by the window from Kreese's office by the mat.
"Those words are simple. Strike first. Strike hard. No mercy. These words are essentially a means to an end. They teach you discipline."
A boy with a cleft lip scar, Eli Moskowitz, started to nod.
"Respect."
Eli and all the others listened quietly as Lucas continued.
"Strength. These are the only things that matter in life to set goals. To achieve victory. Cobra Kai is not a hobby, or a club. Cobra Kai, is an art. You want the same glory and prestige I've just gotten? The same fame? Fine. Live by the creed. And you'll get something far more important than all that, you'll become Cobra Kai."
Lucas turned and nodded to Kreese and Johnny who both nodded back.
"Alright Mr. Schwarber they got it. Return." Johnny said.
"Yes Sensei." Lucas bowed and returned to his spot in the square of fifteen other kneeling Cobras.
Kreese stepped forward. "Mr. Schwarber is correct. All that fanfare made about his win is well deserved. But it's all talk. In here! You learn how to strike. That is all Cobra Kai is, or ever will be. Striking. Gives you victory. And victory, is Cobra Kai."
Johnny quickly interrupted his moment. "But there's something more important. Which is honor. And doing things the right way. Which is why almost none of you are wearing our uniform yet."
Kreese frowned as Johnny continued. "The ways of Cobra Kai helped create champions. Like Schwarber. Like me. But it needs to create a strict and proper code. One based on morals, and ethics. You earn your uniform and your white belt when you uphold our creed. And start your journey on becoming Cobra Kai."
"I mean. Look at this freak." Johnny stopped by Eli. "With the, you know. Freaky as hell lip." Eli's jaw tightened in embarrassment, Kreese noticed the way Eli scowled. "If he can become a Cobra Kai, the rest of you sure can. But you gotta be dedicated, and tough to learn how. You gotta shed that loser skin to become a Cobra. And it starts by acknowledging who you are and which areas you can toughen up in."
Johnny looked right into Eli's eyes. "And fixing them."
Johnny pointed to Lucas, who had taken his spot back on the mat. "He just made national karate tournament history. Showed up on all your Facegrams or whatever getting a million thumbs up." he now pointed at the Cobras in training. "So what? He's still just a blue belt in this dojo's karate, still a fifth gup. Because he's only had a year to understand everything there is to know about how to conduct himself properly. As a fighter, and a person. And while I'm proud of his progress and acknowledged what he's learned under Mr. Kreese. You need to do more than replicate his strikes."
Johnny continued. "Replicate the code. Because that's just black ink on a white canvas that he just pointed to. Sure it's helpful. But you have to use your judgment about how to apply it properly. Now enough talk. Mr. Keene, warm them up!
"Yes Sensei!" Johnny's son walked to the front of the class and bowed.
Robby called out. "Fighting positions! Jab punch! Ready!?"
...
As Robby warmed up the Cobras, Johnny was flipping through a very extensive student list in what was once Kreese's office, sitting in what would've been his chair.
Kreese entered his office. "It was a nice speech. Schwarber helped too I guess."
"Yeah, whatever. He might be a champ." Johnny said writing something down next to a name. "But he's still just a kid who turned fifteen a few weeks ago with weird levels of intelligence, and admittedly fighting skill."
Kreese chuckled in surprise. "Just a kid? I don't think any kid could take the All Valley Golden trophy at fourteen, even if it was just a few days before his fifteenth birthday. He also wasn't scored on a single time. He didn't lose, a single point, the entire tournament. Not to mention he did it all unaffiliated, so the only real coach he had was himself."
"What are you saying?" asked Johnny. "I already know all that. I was there with Robby, you saw us."
"I'm just saying when I trained you here." Kreese looked around what exactly was his old office during the eighties. "It took you a few more tries than it took Schwarber to accomplish all that. I don't like comparing my students but-"
"Schwarber. And everyone out there. Are no longer your students." said Johnny.
"That's what I needed to talk to you about." Kreese sighed. "I still don't get what you mean about making me just a student."
"That's what we agreed to. I'm the only Sensei here, you're just an observer. You're lucky I even let you say anything or even stand here after what you did."
"Well if it wasn't for me you'd still be running that Eagle dojo. Um, Steel Eagle Karate was it? Wasn't Robby your only student after it ran for a year? And after he only made it as far as the semis. How much attention do you think it would get then?"
Johnny put his pen down. "Okay. You need to back up. Right now. And get to your point."
"I by no means think I should be the only Sensei again and you my assistant," Kreese said. "You're not a kid anymore Johnny, you deserve more respect than just being my student. But I trained our champion out there. Personally, for almost a year, to turn him into the fighter he is now."
"So did LaRusso for that matter. What's your point?" Johnny added as Kreese instantly looked down at his feet. "I'm the Sensei here."
"What do I do then? To help run the dojo?"
"Help me organize drills and classes. Maybe toss in a lesson or help me demonstrate something when I need it."
Kreese scoffed. "So I'm your assistant then? Me. A student, in everything but name?"
"If you don't like it. The door's over there."
"Quite frankly Johnny you're not being fair about this."
"Fair!?" Johnny burst out of his chair, walking right over to Kreese to growl in his face. "Trying to kill me when I was just a seventeen year old kid wasn't fair. Then hitting Tommy and Bobby for daring to protect me. That wasn't exactly fair either."
"I've told you Johnny. That was over thirty years ago. And I'm not that kind of person anymore." Kreese paused, stepping forward to speak. "Look at who I trained for a year. He never fights dirty. He's not a bully. He's fifteen years old and he's on the cover of Black Belt magazine! Everyone knows who he is. You know who he is too."
"But I don't really know you after all this time and for a time I wish I didn't. And quite frankly." Johnny said with quiet anger. "I don't care enough to try anymore. You're only here as a favor to Schwarber. Nothing less, nothing more. You interrupt my class or question my authority as Sensei one more time. And you won't be allowed back here ever again."
"I'll make sure of it personally," added Johnny calmly.
Kreese noticed the way Johnny's hands balled into fists when he said this.
"Alright." Kreese nodded. "I've heard you loud and clear."
"I need to hear you say it. The same way you made me do it."
Johnny watched Kreese swallow and speak. "Yes Sensei."
"Good." Johnny turned and nodded towards the door.
...
The following day, Eli Moskowitz was no more when he walked into the dojo.
Someone else had taken his place.
"Eli what the-" Robby was confused.
"I'm taking the lesson to heart. Thanks for the advice on how to do it Schwarber."
Lucas smiled and nodded at what he had told him.
Eli was wearing a tall and proud blue mohawk, the class was impressed in the waiting area and stretching out on the mat.
Kreese seemed silently satisfied, Johnny surprised.
Lucas spoke loudly. "Think the Hawk deserves to be acknowledged as such huh?"
"Definitely. Let that be a lesson to all of you on how to shed your loser skin to become Cobras. Fall in, Hawk. The rest of you too." said Johnny as the class did so.
...
Miguel was taking out the trash in his apartment building in Reseda.
Robby walked up to him, talking. "Hey man. Haven't seen you in about two weeks."
"Yeah." Miguel trailed. "My mom wants me as far away from karate as possible she said. Thinks it could be dangerous for me. She saw the Black Belt magazine article your dojo's champion made on it. Now she really thinks it's dangerous."
"It makes the world safer if anything," Robby said. "But look. There's a party tonight in the third cove out by Laguna. It's a nice spot, we go there sometimes."
"You and your karate buddies?"
"Things are a bit tense with one of the girls who might be there. But we have class, won't be there until later tonight." said Robby. "Want my advice? Just go there and chill. Pretty quickly man, you'll see there isn't much to worry about in this town in terms of safety. After that happens. Talk to your mom, and ask if you can give Cobra Kai a try. It's not as dangerous as it seems."
Miguel nodded. "Okay. Okay I'll go."
...
At two thirty in the afternoon, with the early summer sun shining bright, Miguel locked up his bicycle in a rack near the beach Robby had told him of and began to walk down it.
Other local teens were already there.
"Hey." Miguel said.
A few boys saw him as Miguel walked through the sand towards them. "Hey."
"I'm uh. New in town. Heard there was a party?" asked Miguel.
"Alright then. I'm Mitch. This is my buddy Chris. That's Demetri."
Demetri was a skinny but tall boy who nodded to Miguel as he checked a text on his phone. "Ugh. Turns out Eli and Aisha won't be here till at least seven o'clock tonight. Still doing that dumb karate thing."
"Eli goes by Hawk dude." said Mitch.
Demetri scoffed. "Sure whatever."
"Those Cobras are badass. Total legends." Mitch sighed. "They have hot girls trying out to join the team I hear. I wanted to try out too but I gotta wait till I get my first paycheck next week."
"Why is the whole town talking about Cobra Kai? It's the only thing I've heard of since I got here." said Miguel.
"I know right?" Demetri groaned. "God you'd think people could shut up for once about karate of all things."
"It's all cool man." Chris, a boy as chubby as Mitch but a bit taller spoke. "Just whatever you do. Don't mention the Cobras to Sam."
"Who's Sam?" wondered Miguel.
"She's over there man." Demetri said as Miguel looked over at her. "Hated the new Cobra Kais to pieces from minute go. Apparently, her dad had-"
Demetri's words faded out Miguel's mind.
Miguel was practically hit with a thunderbolt.
A huge wave hit the beach and sprayed everywhere. Samantha LaRusso was chatting with several other girls nearby. She wore nothing but a simple one piece bathing suit and Miguel could barely form words.
Miguel was still speechless.
"Yeah. Good luck man." Demetri laughed and patted Miguel's shoulder. "The day you get with her. I'll join all this karate stuff I swear."
"Solid eight or a nine," Mitch said wincing as he tried a beer from a nearby cooler. "But you better watch out. A girl that hot, has to have plenty of guys willing to compete for her."
Miguel started to wake up out of the tiny stupor seeing Sam put him in.
"I think I'll be okay. So." Miguel said. "We gonna do something or just stand around all day talking. Or actually do something for once?"
"Like?" asked Mitch.
Having an idea, Miguel smiled.
...
OST: Bop Bop On the Beach - Jan and Dean
...
"Over here over here!"
Miguel and all the boys were playing soccer on the beach. They had drawn rough lines in the sand as goal posts and started running around.
"Come on man pass! Over here!"
Miguel passed to Chris and he shoulder tackled Mitch out of the way and passed to Miguel who scored a goal.
Chris helped Mitch up from the sand. "You good man?"
He smacked his best friend's hand away. "Whatever dude."
In a huge huddle, the boys were trying to dig out the ball from a pit in the sand with their bare feet.
Sam and her friends all raised their hands and looked away as sand was kicked everywhere.
"Hey!" one of them complained.
"I'm gonna score on your ass, watch!" shouted Mitch to the other boys who had the ball now, pushing Demetri and then Chris out of the way.
Miguel was staring at Sam for a second, and the moment she noticed and smiled at him he ran off.
A blonde girl Sam was speaking to laughed and muttered seeing how embarrassed Sam was at this and Sam slapped her knee playfully with the back of her hand.
"Shut up Yas." Sam muttered.
"I bet he's in loooove." she said.
"Hold me Sam. Hold me!" the girls all laughed loudly.
"Dude that Sam girl. What part'a town's she from?" wondered Miguel to the other boys.
Mitch laughed. "The Hills. So outta your league, forget about it."
"What hills!?" Miguel asked loudly.
Chris explained. "Rich ass hills the hell do you think?" Mitch and Chris laughed as they all kept kicking the soccer ball around.
The rest of the day they played soccer, some surfed. And the entire day until sunset, Miguel failed to work up the courage to go and talk to Sam.
...
'It Takes Two to Tango' by Paul Davis played softly on Sam's portable Bluetooth speaker as everyone cooked hot dogs over small and safe fire pits in the sand.
Miguel could still barely focus on what he was doing.
"Trust me. I've had my eye on Sam's friend, Yasmine, since I met her last year. Guys like the Cobras eat us up for breakfast." insisted Demetri. "All the girls want to date a stupid Cobra."
"So overrated." Chris agreed.
"So badass!" hissed Mitch.
Miguel finished his hot dog. "Screw it. I'm gonna go talk to her."
"Good luck." Demetri laughed. "You'll need it."
Yasmine lightly patted Sam's shoulder as Miguel walked over holding a soccer ball. "Hey."
The girls all stopped talking to each other.
Sam smiled for a second. "Hey."
"I'm Miguel. New in town."
Sam wiped the sand off her jean covered legs and stood up to shake Miguel's hand. "Sam. How are you liking LA so far?"
"Pretty good. You play?" Miguel extended the ball to Sam. "I know it kinda well."
"My little brother plays. This guy helped him get into it and- Anyway. Yeah. I don't play."
"Let me teach you."
Miguel and Sam started to play hacky sack with the soccer ball.
They laughed and Miguel spoke. "No. Like this see. Don't stop hitting it even if you miss."
"Well let me try it come on." said Sam.
Nearby but out of earshot, Yasmine muttered to one of the girls. "What a loser right?"
"Uh huh. He's got dweeb written all over him." one of them said.
Sam and Miguel continued to have their little moment with the soccer ball, but trouble approached nearby very quickly about an hour after sunset.
...
OST: The Ride - The Matches
...
Through the sand dunes and hills above the beach, the Cobra Kais finally started to arrive at the party.
They all wore red and blue leather Cobra Kai jackets with their last names on them and were riding dirt bikes.
"Whooo!" one of them howled.
"Yeah! That was awesome man!" cheered Lucas, wearing the brightest red jacket of all of them as he stopped his dirtbike.
Robby appeared by his left side, wearing a navy blue jacket. "Hell yeah!" he gripped hands with Lucas and they nodded and laughed to each other.
Hawk was on Lucas' right, balancing his dirt bike carefully. "Check this out." he revealed a hip flask from his jacket.
"Nice." Robby smiled before shaking his head at the offer.
One of the two Cobras accompanying them, two wearing blue leather jackets labeled 'Rickenberger' and 'Miller' spoke.
"Me dude!" Rickenberger said.
"Here you go Mikey you first," Hawk said giving him the flask.
"Thanks!" Miller said as Hawk tossed him it.
As Miller took a sip of the liquor and passed it to Rickenberger, Lucas spoke, leaning on the handles of his dirtbike. "Goddamn. What a summer huh?"
"Tell me about it. Two weeks of Cobra Kai and it feels like I'm a whole new person!" Hawk said proudly. "This is it man! The life!"
"That's what I've been trying to tell you man. It's a way of life! The right one!" said Lucas proudly.
Hawk's leather gloved hand clapped with Lucas' and they smiled at each other.
Robby muttered to Lucas. "Dude. Are we gonna go down there or what?"
"In a second. This summer is awesome right? And it's just gotten started? But when it's done. We got an important year ahead of us. Sophomore year guys. A year to make it all work. That's what I gotta do!"
Mikey laughed. "Ha! Hawk check this out man Schwarber doesn't even need to use his Instagram to set some trends."
"What?" asked Hawk quietly.
"Look!"
Hawk could see Miguel and Sam flirtatiously playing hacky sack and soccer.
Hawk looked completely furious.
Robby spoke out. "Dude forget about it! She said she doesn't want to talk to you!"
"Her problem! Not mine." hissed out Hawk, seething, putting his bike helmet back on.
"Hawk dude, we can go get wasted somewhere else!" Lucas called out as Hawk already started to leave the line of Cobras on dirt bikes. "Dude! Hawk you hearing me!?"
"Yeah what do you even want to do down there?" wondered Robby.
"Strike first, that's what." Hawk said coldly.
Lucas had to yell over the rumble of Hawk's motorbike engine. "Hawk come on man!-"
Hawk had already left, roaring downhill.
"This is ridiculous." scoffed Lucas. "He never listens to anyone but Sensei!"
The Cobras all rode down to the beach. Their headlights cutting through the pale darkness of the downhill slopes and dunes down to the beach.
They hit the jumps perfectly on their dirtbikes, hooting and howling as they laughed and rode.
...
Sam politely handed the ball back to Miguel and spoke. "Just a second okay?"
"Sure." Miguel said as Sam started to march away.
Hawk appeared with all the other Cobra Kais on their dirt bikes, sending sand everywhere.
The entire beach party soon approached, chatting with the Cobras. Miguel could tell they were all friends from going to the same highschool.
Robby and Lucas muttered quietly to each other, not having left their dirtbikes and leaning on them instead.
"Hey Sam we need to talk." Hawk insisted.
"Okay. How about we don't?" Sam said plainly.
"How about we do? I join Cobra Kai and the next day you forget about everything? Not cool." said Hawk.
Rickenberger nodded. "Mm. Not cool indeed."
"Stay the hell outta this Doug!" Sam raised a finger.
"Oooh." Doug smiled as Robby and Mikey chuckled quietly.
"We barely dated." said Sam. "We went out for like three weeks at most Eli."
"But like we should at least still be able to talk to each other," Hawk said as Miguel watched the scene silently. "Come on Sam what're we doing here?"
"Whatever it is. I don't care."
Sam started to raise the volume on her Bluetooth speaker.
Hawk quickly shut it off. "Come on Sam. I just. Want. To talk. How is that so hard to agree to?"
Lucas started to step forward, about to intervene when Sam raised her voice. "I said no!"
"What's your problem!? Damn! I just wanna talk and you're acting like I killed your cat!"
"You might as well have." Sam said.
Hawk sighed and then Sam again turned her Bluetooth speaker on.
"Come on now."
Before Hawk could turn it off again Sam moved it away.
Then Hawk had enough and grabbed it, turned it off before Sam could do anything.
"Hey!" exclaimed Sam.
"You promise you'll talk? Because this is getting out of hand okay?"
"Give it back right now!" Sam said.
"Just give her back her speakers Hawk we're wasting our time here." sighed out Lucas.
Hawk barely looked back at him. "Says who man?"
Miguel was walking forward as Hawk was distracted.
"Says me. Now let's go. Sam doesn't want us here and we're clearly making her uncomfortable."
"That's right!" Sam said. "So-"
Miguel had snatched the speaker out Hawk's hands and given it back to Sam before anyone could react.
Yasmine gasped.
Hawk turned around slowly from arguing with Lucas. "Excuse me. Did I say you were a part of this?"
"Just leave her alone dude." Miguel asked.
"He's right man this keeps getting more and more out of hand!" Lucas said.
Hawk chuckled. "Oh you gotta be the hero now huh?"
Miguel didn't know how to react. "Well. Yeah."
"Oh sure. Sure!" Hawk smiled.
Hawk nodded and pushed Miguel right into the sand. "Come on dude back off. I won't say it again, stay out of this!" warned Hawk loudly, pointing down to Miguel.
"Eli stop it!" shouted Sam.
Seeing Miguel get ready to run at him, Hawk ignored her and rolled up the sleeves of his blue leather Cobra Kai jacket.
...
Karate Kid OST: Fite Night - Bill Conti
...
Miguel brushed the sand off himself as the beach party cheered on the building fight. Sam easily could've fended off Mikey and Doug but didn't want it to escalate with trained Cobras nearby, Robby and Lucas. Still, Mikey and Doug moved Sam behind them so she couldn't intervene.
Even with just two and a half weeks of Cobra Kai training Hawk didn't even have to hit Miguel to knock him into the sand.
Lucas was about to intervene but Robby put a hand on his chest, shaking his head. "He wanted this man."
"Robby-"
"He did start it," Doug said before shrugging as Sam shoved him slightly.
Hawk tripped Miguel into the sand with two easy shoves and moving around to avoid random hook punches.
As Miguel got back up slipping into the sand and stood in a very awkward fighting stance, Hawk chuckled. "You want it!? You want it!? You want this!?"
"Y-Yeah!" shouted Miguel.
"Okay!"
Hawk's fist made a loud snapping sound when it connected with Miguel's face.
Everyone gasped or laughed at seeing Hawk hit Miguel right in the nose with a perfect jab punch and he collapsed to the sand.
Sam winced. "Eli, I'm gonna do something I swear!"
"What? What!?" challenged Hawk. "What're you gonna do!?"
Sam hesitated from intervening physically Hawk and spoke. "Bet you feel real tough now!"
"He's the one who doesn't know how to back off!" Hawk scoffed. "Look I did nothing!"
Hawk walked over to a crouching Miguel and spoke genuinely. "Look dude I'm sorry I just wanted to-"
A random but connecting hook punch landed right on Hawk's cheek. It was barely effective but Hawk was shocked.
The beach party loved it and cheered them on.
"We're good now right?" asked Miguel.
Hawk was staring right at Miguel in silent rage.
"We're good right-"
He had already caught an elbow to the jaw before he could finish his sentence. Hawk then hit him with a front kick to the stomach and Hawk used a jab punch, a one two straight punch combination directly to the eye this time to properly knock Miguel to the sand.
With a black eye and unable to see very well, Miguel's head felt like it was spinning and he couldn't get back up at all.
...
I was a little shocked.
Not because of how much I knew history repeated itself. But because I hadn't found the courage to stop a really good friend of mine from making a mistake. Two and a half weeks of Cobra Kai under Johnny and Kreese was enough to take care of an untrained assailant.
That or Hawk was as naturally good at karate as I knew he was in the show.
"Lucas you good man?" I heard Robby say.
"Luke. You good?" he asked me again.
"I'm fine." I lied.
A part of me wanted to help Miguel up from the sand. I just didn't know what to do.
I saw Sam shove Hawk back. "What did that just accomplish huh?"
"Goddamn to see something rationally you gotta get hit with like a ballistic missile or something," Hawk muttered. "Ridiculous." he scoffed.
"You are such an ass!" shouted Sam.
"Well then do something about it!" Hawk tapped his own chin. "Come on LaRusso whatcha got?"
I knew Sam knew that Miyagi-Do was not about striking first. I still wouldn't blame her at all for giving Hawk a taste of his own medicine.
Sam still did nothing.
"That's what I thought," Hawk said proudly. "Let's go guys."
Mikey and Doug stupidly went for hand grabs and high fives as Sam smacked Hawk's arm away.
As I turned around and was about to mount my dirt bike some sand hit me in the shoulder.
"Was this what you wanted?" shouted Sam at me. "Huh!? People fighting? Is that why you reopened Cobra Kai?"
I frowned. "I reopened it to teach people how real karate needs to be."
"Yeah. What a great job you've done Luke." Sam kicked a decent bit of sand over my shin.
I saw her dote over a Miguel probably holding a black eye in the sand and didn't know which side to take.
I was just frustrated with myself for not stopping the whole thing when Robby insisted.
"You better listen to me dude," I said to Hawk before we left. "That was just unnecessary. You could've walked away."
"What're you my mother? You're not even my Sensei," said Hawk bitterly to me. "Walking away is a pussy move. Is that what you wanted me to do?" he asked angrily. "Be a pussy?"
"No man," I said quietly. "Never."
"Right. Now let's go get wasted in some alleyway or something." Hawk said before we all left on our dirtbikes.
I had probably just given Daniel LaRusso his first student in case he had decided to open up Miyagi-Do. Great job Schwarber. Great job.
...
The next day in class I listened to everyone speak in the waiting area.
"When Hawk punked that dumbass Latino kid last night at the beach." chuckled Doug Rickenberger. "Man. Highlight of my week." he said bumping fists with Mikey and gripping hands for a moment with Hawk and nodding to him.
It likely wasn't the end of it though. Miguel had more natural talent for karate than any character on the show, should he learn Miyagi-Do, he'd probably be on a very high level of skill.
What honestly bothered me after everything I knew was that technically Miguel belonged here.
I knew everybody in the dojo by name, all fifteen of them after only three weeks or so of training.
There was Tory Nichols and Aisha Robinson, our only girl Cobras Johnny said had any 'Cobra Kai potential' at all. Then there were my three idiot friends, Hawk, Mikey, and Doug, and Robby as my right hand man, the Bobby Brown to my Johnny Lawrence as we babysat our new Dutch, Jimmy, and Tommy all day after class as yesterday had proven.
Edwin, Big Red, and Dieter had joined, they got along pretty well with me. In a way, I liked hanging out with them more than Mikey, Doug, and Hawk because they didn't cause as much trouble, but they respectfully declined any invitations to hang out with our group of five every time I asked.
Bert had joined and stayed, Johnny liked his potential when he saw how scuffed up his knees were. Bert said he didn't mind the long bike ride every day even if it physically hurt him from how much he wanted to dedicate himself to Cobra Kai.
Kreese and Johnny took one look at each other and that was it. He was in.
The last five were good fighters but nothing incredible I thought. I recognized Mia White from school, the girl with the dreadlocks who had joined Kreese's Cobra Kai with Charlotte in the second and fourth seasons respectively. Char and I hadn't talked since the tournament, I think she was expecting me to make the next move and set up another date. They were sort of let in as a favor for me.
Frank, who I knew would join Miyagi-Do when Daniel swung by, as well as Nate, and Little Red who would leave Cobra Kai too were also here.
No one had earned their white belt yet. But I got a strong feeling it would likely be Hawk.
"Fall in!" said Johnny as he and Krese walked out from the backroom by the water fountain.
Everyone got into their rows and proceeded to kneel onto our shins for the start of class.
We weren't arranged in any particular order, except in rough order of experience. So I knelt on the very right most corner closest to the mirror, with Robby behind me, and Hawk behind him, with Doug behind Hawk.
The other rows were pretty random, I didn't turn my head to look at them and instead kept looking forward, right at the mirrors.
"Hawk." said Johnny.
"Yes Sensei." Hawk said calmly.
"Up here."
Hawk stood up and bowed, walking over to where Johnny was and got into Junbi stance.
"We heard you got into your first fight yesterday." Johnny said.
"Yes Sensei."
"Explain what happened."
Hawk looked a little embarrassed to talk about it in front of the entire class. "I got into an argument at the beach party last night. This one kid intervened, wasn't his place you know. I didn't know his name. I pushed him down just to know to back off, and pretty soon he ran right at me, and he hit me in the face for it. And I used the basic Cobra bites you taught me to not let him think he could get away with it. Front kick, jab punch. I stood my ground Sensei and didn't let him continue chasing me around."
I had to fight really hard to smile.
Sound familiar Sensei?
Johnny nodded slowly. "Okay. You all need to take after Hawk. A man confronted Hawk. He became the enemy. He didn't take it too far, he didn't pin him to the ground and punch the lights out of him. He restrained him as a threat by striking first, nothing escalated too far but his enemy couldn't bother him anymore. Hawk, you have earned your white belt. Mr. Kreese?"
Kreese nodded and walked to the office to retrieve a uniform and a white belt.
Kreese handed the white belt to Johnny and the white Cobra Kai uniform to Hawk.
"Go get dressed quickly. Class is waiting."
Hawk smiled. "Yes Sensei."
As fast as he could, Hawk went into the backroom where the bathroom was and walked out wearing his new GI.
"You are now, officially." Johnny tied the white belt around Hawk's belt. "A white belt in Cobra Kai karate. Wait!" Johnny spoke a bit louder. "We do not applaud at Cobra Kai. Even if Hawk might deserve applause, instead we give a yell of acknowledgment of his progress. And touch our foreheads to the mat in respect of the dojo creed. Say Yes Sensei! guys."
"Yes Sensei!" the class yelled in unison, including Hawk.
"Ait!" shouted Johnny.
All of us bowed from our kneeling position on the mat.
We rose back up and Johnny spoke. "Hawk. Return."
Hawk bowed and returned to his spot behind Robby.
"You all have to learn something important here," said Johnny. "A man confronted Hawk. And that man chose violence, despite it being clear that Hawk wanted him to stay out of it. Sticking your nose where it doesn't belong. That can get you in trouble as Hawk proved. But beating up someone without any training at all is no accomplishment. I am merely acknowledging the fact that Hawk stood by the dojo creed and didn't let someone do whatever they wanted to him."
"You man up. Stand your ground and defend what's yours. That's Cobra Kai. And it's good you've all stood by that. You earn your GI when I say you're ready. You don't get one when you get an A on a test or whatever. Or cause you helped an old lady cross the street. You do something, genuinely badass or manly. Or."
Johnny looked at the girls in our class. "Cool, I guess. Something important that sticks by what I've taught you. And you'll progress at our school. Okay, let's start with the second part of the dojo creed and then we can start warm ups."
Johnny began to walk through the lines, all of us looking straight forward.
"Fear does not exist in this dojo does it!?"
"No Sensei!" we all yelled back in unison.
"Pain does not exist in this dojo does it!?" asked Johnny, barking loudly.
"No Sensei!" we all repeated.
"Defeat does not exist in this dojo does it!?"
"No Sensei!"
"Fear does not exist in this dojo does it!?"
"No Sensei!"
"Pain does not exist in this dojo does it!?"
"No Sensei!"
"Defeat does not exist in this dojo does it!?"
"No Sensei!"
There was a pause as Johnny walked back to the front of the class.
"What do we study here!?"
"The way of the fist sir!"
"And what is that way!?"
"Strike first! Strike hard! No mercy sir!"
"I! Can't! Hear you!" yelled Johnny.
We all repeated louder. "Strike first! Strike hard! No mercy sir!"
After another pause, Johnny spoke. "Mr. Schwarber!"
"Yes Sensei!"
"Warm them up!"
"Yes Sensei." I said.
I heard a cloth slipping sound from my GI as I bounced up from the mat.
I bowed and walked to the front of the class, fixing my blue belt and the black headband around my head.
I made a gesture upwards with both my palms.
The class all rose to the feet in a collective movement.
We bowed to each other.
"Fighting positions!" I called out. "Jab punch! Ready!"
I had to throw the one two straight punch combination first with proper guard and technique and the class had to then mirror me.
"Aiya!"
"Kiya!"
"Aiya!"
"Kiya!"
...
A/N:
Hello there everyone thanks for reading. In the last fic I visualized Dylan Minnette as Lucas when writing his scenes in the third person and I think I will again. Other than that stay safe and again, thank you all for reading.