Arriving at Lascari's, that sweltering scent of garlic and red wine filled the room. It wasn't loud like a lot of places in Newark, but there was still some noise, mostly from the waiting staff. Before I looked around for Ma and Ali, I kept thinking about Johnny. I still can't believe his sensei treated him that way. Even if I lost, Mr. Miyagi would never try to kill me, he would be proud that I made it that far, even with a busted leg. My heart was telling me that I needed to Ali, but my mind was telling me 'it's not worth it'. What do I do? Mr. Miyagi would know.
"What do I tell Ali about what I saw?" I asked.
"Nothing", said Mr. Miyagi.
Hearing the words 'nothing' had me reeling with a sense of confusion and disbelief.
"What do you mean 'nothing'?" asks Daniel.
"Nothing to be said, Daniel-san", says Mr. Miyagi.
"That psycho tried to kill Johnny".
"Hai, and Miyagi stopped it from happening".
"Yeah, I know, but what if…"
Before I could continue, Mr. Miyagi gently waved his hand in front of me, like he did when I asked him to visit Cobra Kai with me.
"Tut-tut-tut-Daniel-san, can't make past prediction if not the same outcome, understand?" asks Mr. Miyagi.
Deep down I knew that this wasn't my problem, but I still felt sorry for Johnny. Having said that, I did win the tournament and I should be happy, so I nodded gently and smiled.
"Yeah, I understand", says Daniel.
"Good, come, we go celebrate", says Mr. Miyagi.
At the time, I didn't know what Mr. Miyagi meant, or why he was telling me to forget about what happened to Johnny. I guess, he was trying to tell me that peace has been brought to us, and that I need to accept that it's over, but my gut was telling me that it was far from it.
-/-
I sat on the pavement for another few minutes after LaRusso and his sensei had left. A thousand goddamn questions entered my mind. Why did Kreese try to kill me? Why did he treat me like the enemy? Why did LaRusso's sensei save me? Why did he spare Kreese? I drowned out the stupid 'why' questions with a grunt, then I got up and without saying a word, I opened my bag, took out my tournament gi, tossed it at Kreese and walked away. That feeling of walking away from Cobra Kai was not an easy thing to do, but goddamn it felt good sticking it to that asshole.
As I headed towards my Honda motorbike, I could hear some footsteps approach me.
"Johnny!" It was Bobby.
"Go away, Bobby", I said.
"If you go, I go".
Behind Bobby were Jimmy, Tommy and Dutch, all walking away from Kreese. Damn, they weren't just my friends, they were my brothers for life.
"Always got your back, Johnny", says Dutch.
Dutch raised his arm in preparation for a brotherly handshake, to which I grabbed and pulled in this Billy Idol-looking, badass friend of mine.
"I can't believe Mr. Miyagi showed mercy", says Tommy.
"It's crazy, man", says Jimmy.
"I don't want to talk about it, let's just get out of here", I said.
They all randomly nod in agreeance and the former Cobras leave the parking lot.
-/-