The next morning, Sky went to the dojo early, to be able to tell Sensei about her coming trip to Italy in private before the rest of the Cobras arrived. It made no difference, though - as soon as she arrived, it became clear that Sensei was already in a bad mood, and he didn't take the news well.

"What the fuck?" he yelled. "You are the fucking Champion! You don't get to take time off!"

"But–" she started, glancing around nervously. There was a broken mirror and shattered glass on the floor, and one wall was stained black as if there had been a fire. Sensei's eyes narrowed in a threatening way as he saw she had noticed. Sky did the wise thing and didn't ask.

"Italy?" his brows furrowed angrily. "What's in there anyway? American pizza not good enough for you?"

"It's not my choice," Sky muttered defensively. "It's because of my Dad's work. I am underaged, it's not like I have much say about it."

"What's your dad doing in Italy? Is he a mafioso or something?"

"Yeah, he's a mafioso. He kidnaps children and sells their kidneys to organ venders." Sky replied with an eye roll. "Anyway, we're only leaving in July, so there is still time before that. And I can train there too - not in a dojo, but by myself."

She thought it best not to mention that Hawk was going too. Sensei seemed pissed enough already, even without that piece of information.

"Well, you'd better," Sensei said, still grudgingly. "You are the champion - don't want you turning all soft during the summer. Someone might take your place."

At that moment, that someone walked in through the doors of the dojo, the bell chimed, and both Sky and Sensei turned to look.

"Diaz," Sensei said as a greeting, and his voice was still harsh. "You're early."

"Sensei," Miguel replied, and bowed, but then his glance shifted to her, and his throat bobbed. "Sky - could we… can we talk?"

She hadn't talked to him since the semifinals, and the memory of the merciless look on his face returned to her instantly. A part of her wanted to just turn her back to Miguel and to start hitting the punching bag imagining it was his stupid face she was hitting, but–

But he is my friend. And I'll be damned if I lose any more friends in this lifetime.

"Sure," she said and glanced at Sensei. "We'll be outside, Sensei."

She walked back to the doors and stepped out with Miguel, the heat of the Californian sun hitting her instantly even if it was still morning. She leaned her back on the wall and crossed her arms on her chest, taking a look at Miguel - who now, in his T-shirt and shorts, looked like a different boy than the one who she had met on the mat. That boy had been cruel and vicious - this one looked like the Miguel she had known before.

"So?" she asked, still wary. "What do you want?"

"To say I'm sorry," Miguel replied. "I… I know I acted like a jerk."

"Yeah, you did." Sky replied, her eyes meeting his. She held the stare for a while, and he was the first one to look down.

"I just… I don't know what got into me. I just wanted to win, so badly." he explained, looking ashamed and beaten. He stuffed his hands deep into the pockets of his shorts and stared at his sneakers. "I've never been the best at anything. I wanted to show everyone I could do that."

"I get it," Sky shrugged. "I've never been the best at anything either."

Miguel looked up, and their eyes met. He still looked sullen and serious. "Well, you're the best now."

"Well, for what's it worth - I still think you should've won," she said. "You are the better fighter. I just got… lucky."

If you could call hearing voices lucky. Again Sky remembered Kat's voice, the loud clear tone in which she had commanded her to sweep Miguel's legs, to finish the fight already. That night, when they had returned home, she had sneaked into the basement and found the ouija board, carried it back into her room, and sat in front of it for two whole hours, her fingers trembling on the pointer, and nothing.

Fucking stupid.

Sky brushed that thought off. Whatever had happened at that tournament, seemed to have been a one-time incident. Kat was gone, her voice in her head had gone silent again, and Sky missed her more than ever.

"It wasn't luck," Miguel said. "You deserved to win. And I am sorry that I hit you on your shoulder, that was a shitty move."

"It's fine," Sky said and gave him a small smile. "Just don't do it again."

"Promise," Miguel said with a relieved smile and held out his hand for a fist bump, which Sky was happy to give him. Life was too short to stay mad at your friends - she had learned that the hard way. Miguel had apologized and that was that, as far as Sky was concerned they were good.

Hawk, who chose that moment to arrive at the dojo, didn't seem to share her point of view. As soon as he noticed the two of them leaning on the wall side by side, smiling and chatting, his brows furrowed and an angry look appeared on his face.

"Asshole," he said to Miguel, clenching his fists. "I told you we weren't done–"

"Stop it!" Sky cried and stepped in between Miguel and Hawk, giving Hawk a glance that would have scared a lesser man shitless. "Miguel apologized. It's all good."

Hawk tilted up his chin and met Miguel's stare. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. I'm really sorry, man," Miguel replied - and Sky greatly appreciated his cool demeanor. The last thing they needed was him throwing a match to the gas tank that was Hawk.

Hawk swallowed, the muscles in his throat worked. "Fine," he finally said through his teeth. "But you hit my girlfriend again, and I'll rip your spine out through your throat."

"Oh, stop it already," Sky rolled her eyes at Hawk. "This isn't Mortal Kombat! You guys are best friends, can you just get past all this stupid nonsense?"

Hawk looked like he had a sharp comment ready on the tip of his tongue, but the way Sky glared at him, made him swallow it.

"Please?" Sky said. "We're all Cobra Kai. We are friends. I don't wanna spend my summer in some stupid drama because you guys are idiots."

"Hey, I apologized," Miguel said, and Sky had to admit he had a point. She raised her brows at Hawk, who still looked like he wanted to murder Miguel.

"Hawk?" she asked rather pointedly.

"Fine, whatever," he muttered and offered his hand for the fist bump handshake thing they always did with Miguel, and Sky had never been happier to see it in her life. She knew how much Miguel's friendship had meant to Hawk during this past year, and she would've hated to see it ruined. At least now they were on the right track again.

Miguel seemed, if not happy, then at least content with the situation, as he walked inside, but Sky took Hawk's hand and stopped him from following Miguel in.

"Spit it out," she said sternly.

"What?"

"Why you're still so fucking mad." She crossed her arms over her chest. "Is this still that stupid jealousy thing? Yeah, I trained with Miguel behind your back, and I know it was a shitty thing to do, but I said I'm sorry. And I'd like for us to get over this already."

Hawk looked exasperated. "I'm not mad at you! I never was, Sky. But yeah, I'm still mad at Miguel!"

"Why?"

"Because he should've fucking known better," he spat out. "It's not cool to hang out with another dude's girlfriend like that. He should've fucking know that you're mine—"

His words chilled Sky's blood, and she froze, her body went utterly still.

You're mine!

He had breathed it into her ear when he'd fucked her so that it hurt, and she'd been blinking down tears. And when he'd found out about the cheating, he had pushed her against the wall, his hand on her throat choking her, he had spat those words to her face.

You're mine!

When he had held the gun in his trembling hand, and pulled the trigger - it hadn't been the sound of the gunshot she had heard, but his voice, shouting those words, and she had known he had wanted them to be the last thing she would hear in this life.

You're mine!

And Sky knew she always would be, she would always be the shadow Matt had made her to be, the lifeless shell who was scared of everything, the stupid slut, the bitch, who deserved to die, who would never be free–

"Hey, Sky–!" Hawk's voice pierced the painful fog of the memories that tried to drown her. "Sky, are you alright?"

She drew in a trembling breath. Four counts in, six out.

"Never say that," she could barely get the words out. "I love you. I am with you. But I am not yours. You do not fucking own me."

"Hey," Hawk's voice was suddenly gentle and worried, he placed his hands on her shoulders and she felt the warmth of his palms even through the fabric of his T-shirt. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

She couldn't answer, the paralyzing fear was still gripping her. Her heart was hammering in her chest, so hard that it hurt. The sunshine had disappeared, as had this small parking lot and the dojo. She was standing one foot in the past, one in the present and the only thing that held her together was Hawk's soothing touch on her skin, his hands that had moved down to her arms.

"Did…" Hawk hesitated and cleared his throat. "Did he say something like that to you?"

He didn't have to elaborate. They both knew who he was talking about.

Sky nodded. She swallowed hard, but the lump in her throat wouldn't move. Carefully Hawk wrapped his arms around her body and pulled her near, and his scent of steel and cotton surrounded her. Breathing it in calmed her heartbeat, and everything about the way he held her, told her she was safe. She heard the steady beat of his heart as she laid her head against his shoulder, and the lingering memory of Matt's voice began to fade.

"I'll never hurt you," he breathed by her ear. "You hear me? I'll never do that."

"I know."

A short silence. He ran his fingers through her hair, his other arm was still around her, pulling her close and her body fit against his like it was meant to be. It was her home, her safe haven and she loved him more than she had ever thought it possible to love anything.

"That's why I'm really mad at Miguel," he said with a low, raspy voice. "Because he hurt you. Repeatedly. And I didn't know. I couldn't stop it."

"I asked him to do it, you know." Sky said silently. "Because I needed to get stronger. And he felt like shit because of it."

"Yeah, well," Hawk breathed. "I still wanna kick his ass for it."

Sky groaned. "I'm so over this shit. Can you please just stop being an aggressive asshole and just be friends with Miguel again?"

That made Hawk let out a small, dry laugh. "Can you stop calling me an aggressive asshole?"

"When you stop acting like one."

At some point Hawk's hands had moved to her waist, his palms were warm on her bare skin, and he was brushing her ribs with his thumbs right under the hem of her crop top. That gentle caress sent shivers through Sky's body, making her heart flutter in her chest.

"I love you," he breathed out softly. "You know I'd do anything for you."

"Then kiss me," she replied, and he did as he was told.

His lips crashed against hers, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. His hands gripped her waist and pushed her against the wall, her lips opened for him and his tongue entered. Before she knew it, they were making out and the world around them disappeared. All that existed was the way his lips molded into hers, his tongue that slid into her mouth, and the dry, throaty sounds of wanting that she drank from his lips, as he pinned her between the wall and his lean body.

She remembered the last time they had been making out like this, against the wall of the empty locker room. It had started just like this, but then he had gripped her hard and turned her around and—

Her cheeks flushed.

They weren't in that locker room now, no privacy here. They were in the parking lot in front of the dojo, and literally anyone could walk into them. Not that Hawk seemed to care - his lips on hers were hungry, his hand was partly under her crop top, she felt his fingers digging into her skin, and she wanted that touch, wanted the sweet burning it caused, but–

–but she heard voices. And with a jolt, she realized they weren't alone.

Sky broke the kiss, her cheeks burning.

There was a large number of young people gathered in front of the dojo, and most of them were shamelessly staring at her and Hawk. Sky had no idea for how long they had been there.

"What you looking at?" Hawk snapped to the people nearest to him, his tone hard and raw, but his hands still lingered on her waist.

A tall dark skinned boy took a step back. "Nothing! Nothing, just…"

"You are the champion, right?" his friend, a bit chubby-looking kid finished his sentence, ogling at Sky. "From the tournament?"

"So what if I am?" Sky replied, but felt a slow grin appearing on her lips. The boys were looking at her all wide-eyed, full of admiration and she couldn't deny that she liked it.

Hawk glanced at her and then turned his eyes back at the newcomers. "Fuck yeah, she's the champion," he said with a crooked smile that told everyone that she was with him, a bit possessive, but Sky decided to let it pass.

The pride in his voice when he called her 'the champion' made her heart beat a bit faster. She had beaten him in a fair fight - but not many guys would love a girl who could kick their ass.

"So you guys wanna be Cobra Kai, huh?" Hawk asked, walking closer to the new kids - and as they nodded excitedly, he made a sharp fake attack raising his fist. The kids jumped back, and Hawk laughed at their faces. "You've got a long road ahead of you."

Sky rolled her eyes, as she followed Hawk to the door - the newcomers opened it for them as if they were some fucking royalty. Something about it didn't sit right with her and she gave them an apologetic smile.

"He's just messing with you, guys," she said to the big dark-skinned boy who was holding the door. "Don't worry about it. My name is Sky, by the way."

"Oh, we know," the boy replied enthusiastically. "I'm Chris."

"And I'm Mitch," the chubby kid said and nodded vigorously.

"Cool," she replied with a grin. "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's get started."

Not much to say about this chapter except that I felt like these conversations needed to happen before we could move on.

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