Chapter 3: When You're the One That's Standing There

Win at any cost.

That was the Cobra Kai way.

That was his way. He was the one who created the discipline, the one who cultivated it and taught it. The one who made it into an art form.

Strike first. Strike hard. No mercy.

The method was simple.

Win at any cost, that was what he always taught his students. No cost was too great.

But he was wrong. There was a cost that was too great, and it was a price he was nearly forced to pay.

He had noticed how dilated Lawrence's pupils were after the first hit and the way he was barely able to cover the stumble in his step when he was walking towards him but he'd brushed it off as a minor inconvenience. He was a Cobra, he'd walk it off.

He should have stopped the match when his gut told him too – when the sight before his eyes morphed from a karate arena into a war torn battlefield. When the sight of his students turned into his brothers in arms fighting at his side against an enemy they had no chance of defeating – when Lawrence lying motionless on the stage was instead a fallen brother lying in a filthy sodden ground in a pool of his own blood.

He realized in that moment that losing wasn't the same as loss and in his effort to prevent the first, he almost suffered the latter.

Sometimes winning did come at a cost – for him it was at the cost of his conscience and his soul.

Losing always came at a cost and for him it was one he was still paying to this day while attempting to drown out the noise of his memories with alcohol during the nights when the pain was especially potent.

"I'm sorry, sensei," Lawrence said, unable to do anything other than stare up at the ceiling of the ambulance. Every fiber of his being seemed completely defeated and it had little to do with the actual loss.

"Sorry's are for losers," he responded. "Are you a loser, Mr. Lawrence?"

"No, sensei," Lawrence answered, choking back his emotions and the small sob bubbling up.

"Then there's nothing to be sorry for," he said.

"Yes, sensei."

"We're Cobra Kai. It'll take more than this to keep us down," he said. He'd never been much for pep talks. He was not beyond the occasional congratulatory display of approval, but only weak people and losers needed constant validation for achieving mediocrity and congratulations every time they managed to wipe their own ass. He never taught his students to strive for meaningless sentiments such as praise and compliments. So when a student showed enough gumption to be worthy of it, it would mean so much more.

But even in his hardened, world-weary soul, he acknowledged that Lawrence needed encouragement, he needed validation and support in that moment. And he gave it as best he could.

"Yes… sensei," Lawrence said through the sob that forced its way out.

A single tear trickled out the corner of his eye and down his temple, splashing onto the back board he was strapped securely onto. The tear represented everything he was feeling on the inside: the pain, the frustration and disappointment in himself – and the fear.

Kreese couldn't find it in him to fault him for that. He'd felt the same sort of fear he never thought he'd ever experience again the moment Lawrence hit the mat and didn't get back up again. Instead, he reached over to pat him on the thigh as acknowledgement and an expression of support before leaning back to rest his back against the ambulance and crossing him arms over his chest.

He finally exhaled.

No fear.

That was the Cobra Kai way, but that wasn't true, every human being feared something.

For John Kreese, he nearly relived his greatest fear that day.

There was a flurry of activity and muffled voices in the hall outside the waiting room before the group of Cobra Kais burst through the door about half an hour after the ambulance arrived at the hospital and Johnny was rushed into the emergency room.

Bobby and Jimmy arrived another fifteen minutes after the group, having stopped by Johnny's house to pick up his mother and it was another hour or so before they were seen by the doctor treating Johnny and updated on his condition.

"He's okay," the doctor said immediately and it was the two words all of them needed to hear the most. Johnny's mom immediately sobbed in relief. Bobby stuck close to her, offering a shoulder to cry her emotions on which she accepted gratefully.

He'd suffered a concussion as the result of the hit to the back of the head during the second round, exacerbated by the kick to the face almost immediately after that knocked him out. The result of the full force kick had also caused whiplash which, while wouldn't cause any long term problems, was not going to be a walk in the park to deal with for the next few months.

Eventually Johnny's mom and their sensei left to follow the doctor to go see him, leaving the rest of the Cobras to finally slump down onto the chairs in relief.

Everyone except Dutch.

"This is all his fault," he said angrily, cracking his knuckles almost obsessively as he paced up and down the room. "That twerp. That weasely little rat, LaRusso. He's gonna pay for this."

"It's not his fault," Bobby responded immediately. No even looking up at Dutch when he answered.

Dutch snapped around immediately at Bobby's comment, his expression a mix of anger and disbelief. "Who the hell's side are you even on, Bobby? I always pegged you for a dweeb lover but not after what he did to Johnny. That's pathetic even for you."

That time Bobby did look up, his brows narrowed and his gaze intense. "You know what's pathetic? A group of five people beating up on one guy, that's what. No. A group of five experienced karate students beating up on a guy who couldn't defend himself. That's pathetic, Dutch!"

"Am I even hearing you right right now?" said Dutch with a laugh of disbelief. "You're really going to sit there and defend the guy who almost broke our friend's neck? What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Me?" Bobby scoffed, spitting the word like he couldn't believe Dutch had the balls to even say those words to him. "The only thing wrong with me was that I just stood by and did nothing when I thought what you guys were doing was wrong. I love Johnny just as much as you do and I feel terrible about what happened. I'd never wish for that to happen to anyone – not even LaRusso, but don't pretend that we weren't the one who forced him into that corner," said Bobby, immediately getting to his feet when Dutch advanced on him threateningly. "We… no, I could have crippled him permanently and for what? So that sensei could have another trophy in his case? At the expense of my reputation and my self-respect! The better question is – what the hell is wrong you?" he jabbed a finger right in the middle of Dutch's chest accusingly. None of the Cobras had ever seen Bobby lose his temper like that and it silenced every single one of them including Dutch who was forced to take a step back by the ferocity of Bobby's jab. "Our friend is in the hospital and the only thing you can think of is continuing with this pointless grudge match. The grudge match that landed us here in the first place!" He turned his attention away from Dutch to address the entire team present. "If anyone here lays so much as a finger on Daniel LaRusso from now on – they'll have to answer to me!"

He cast one last withering glare at Dutch and dropped back down onto the seat, crossing his arms over his chest as if challenging anyone to step up against him right then.

If there was one thing Dutch respected, it was balls and it was clear by his expression that he thought Bobby showed a gigantic pair made of steel right then.

"You heard the man. No one touches the twerp," he said finally, backing away from Bobby before turning around to go lick his wounded pride at the far end of the room.

Bobby could feel his heart pounding in his chest. The last thing he wanted to do was get into a fight with Dutch of all people, but he was done being the little pebble in the way that everyone stepped over to go do whatever the hell they wanted whenever the hell they wanted to do it.

He was done being the resident doormat. If only he'd stood his ground against his friends back then, everyone might have stopped incessantly tormenting LaRusso; LaRusso might not have had to resort to doing those moves that were far beyond his capabilities and skill and Johnny might not have ended up in the hospital – or worse – because of it.

If only.

Tbc.