Lee was sitting with Moon in the stands. She was trying to watch Demetri's match with Robby but she was worried about Miguel. "Do you think he has feeling in his legs? Is it possible that he twisted something and he somehow relapsed?" Lee stopped talking when she began to hyperventilate.
"Presley. Calm down. Breathe with me. In and out. In and out." Moon grabbed her face to turn it towards her.
Lee stares at Moon's lips and focuses on breathing at the same time that she did. "Thank you." She nodded when she was able to think calmly again.
"You're welcome." She let go of her face. "Try not to stress. The professionals are doing what they can for him. Focus on your friend's match."
"Point Keene. Point Two-Zero." They turn their heads to see that Robby got another point on Demetri.
He went to the side to talk to Daniel and Eli after getting some advice he went back to the center of the mat. They circle each other and dodge the other hits. Lee cheered when it looked like Demetri landed a hit. "Block. No Point." The referee called. Robby's hand was up to block the kick to the head. Demetri was able to get him on the ground but Robby got back up. He swiped his legs and landed a kick to his chest. The referee declared Robby the winner.
"He put up a good fight." Lee thought her friend should be proud of himself. He was able to compete with the best. He may have lost three points in a row but they weren't easy points for Robby to get.
"Yeah, he did." Moon smiles, happy with the progress he made from hiding behind Eli to standing on his own two feet.
"Hey dude," Anthony walks into the locker room where Kenny was cleaning his bloody nose. "I saw your match out there… and you know, I saw Robby compete last year. He's one of the best." He put his hands in his pocket.
"What do you want?" Kenny didn't want his bully to see him licking his wounds.
"To say that I'm sorry for all the shit that I did. I guess I was trying to…" He was going to continue apologizing.
But, Kenny cut him off. "To impress your friends by picking on the new kid that didn't have any."
"I'm sorry it was a stupid desperate feeling. Last year I used to be a fat nerd that everyone avoided. This year came and everyone gravitated to me. You came and the girl I liked showed you attention. I don't know, I felt everything crumbling." He opened up like Lee told him to.
"So you know what it feels like?" He tilts his head.
"That dread and worthlessness, yes. I didn't want to feel that again. It was stupid. I don't know if it was scarcity or imposter syndrome. I got freaked out and took it out on you." He explains.
"So you know what it was like and you made me feel like that anyways." Kenny delivers a spinning kick to his stomach. He fell back against the lockers. He treats his body like a punching bag.
Robby ran in to pull Kenny off of him. "What are you doing?"
"Just getting payback on the kid who thought he could bully me and get away with it." He smirks at the beat-up kid on the ground.
"Anthony LaRusso was your bully?" Robby recognized the younger male.
"Not anymore." He kneels to grab his face. "You hear that. Get ready for high school next year because you're in for a world of pain." He pushed his face back.
"Hey, this is not how I trained you." He scolded him.
"It's Cobra Kai." He glared at his mentor.
"No mercy." They look at the door to see Lee standing with Lia Cabrera. "Your friend wanted to see you, Kenny."
"Anthony, are you okay?" Lia ran to check on him. "What were you doing, Kenny?"
"He bullied me. I was defending myself." He didn't know how everyone including her turned a blind eye to Anthony and his pack of assholes.
"Bullshit, he was apologizing as I told him to. Sorry, for the shit advice." She went over to help Anthony.
"It's fine. I need some time alone." He ran off. Lia ran after him.
"You did this on purpose." Kenny glares at Lee.
"How? I didn't even know that girl or that you were the one that he was bullying. I just told him to own up to what he did wrong." She scoffs as she leans against the lockers. "Is it arrogant of you to think I would do all that to screw you over?"
"Walk it off." Robby scolds when he sees Kenny take a step toward her. She didn't flinch, in fact, she was scratching her back against the lockers. Kenny storms out.
"So, he's been fully converted to a Cobra Kai." She watches him in disappointment.
"That funny coming from someone who beat someone's face in." He was in the middle of scoffing but stopped when she turned to him with tears in her eyes.
"I lost control and that was wrong. Rage feels gross." She wipes her eyes.
"Yeah, it does." He nods.
They heard over the intercom that they were starting up again. "I would wish you luck but I don't mean that so don't get hurt." She walks towards the door.
Robby laughed. "I'm going to win the right way so you'll have to call me champ."
"We'll see." She shot him a smile before walking out.
"Cobra Kai and Miyagi Do are neck and neck on the leaderboard." Daryl was on the mats since Miguel's time was running out. Lee hung her head from her spot next to Johnny. It would have been them on Cobra Kia's tail if she didn't lose control. "But, there is a dark horse or should I say dark bird that still has a chance. Will Eagle Fang karate stay alive in our dojo race? We're about to find out. Miguel Diaz has one minute to return to this mat." A countdown clock appears on the big screen.
"A countdown clock… a little dramatic don't you think?" Devon chuckles.
"Yeah, it's the All Valley." Mitch glares at her for not taking this seriously.
"They trained all year for this." Lee thought it should be treated that way. She watches Eli stand on the other side of the mat waiting. The clock went down to twenty seconds. "I thought you said he was good." She looks at Johnny.
"He was." He stares at the door.
"Maybe, he's taking it down to the wire, playing into the drama." Devon looks at her tense Sensei and teammates.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one." The crowd counts down.
"Well, it looks like Miguel Diaz is not going to fight," Daryl announced. Johnny walks backstage to find him. "This means the winner by default is Eli Moskowitz who advances to the finals where he will face Robby Keene. The finals are up next."
Lee went to congratulate her boyfriend but he was frowning. "What's wrong?"
"I want to win without any doubt." He didn't want to hear about how he won because Miguel couldn't go on.
"A part of the tournament is endurance. If someone can't go on then that's it." She didn't see his win as tainted.
"She's right." The couple jumps at Daniel standing next to them. "It is about who is the last man standing. While it was sad that Miguel couldn't go on, I spoke with the medic and it was a pulled muscle."
"See, nothing to frown about." She put a finger on the corners of his mouth to lift it into a smile.
"Alright. Alright." He knocks her hand away to smile on his own. "Next is Robby. A rematch I have been waiting for."
"There's my guy!" She hugged him.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the wait is finally over…. It's finals time." He sang, making the crowd cheer. "Since Cobra Kai scored the most points, they only need one point to win to be crowned grand champion. But, if Miyagi Do win both matches, the title is theirs. Ohh, High drama." He rubbed his hands together, happy with how this was playing out. "Up first is the boys' fight. Good luck to all our fighters. Let's go." He ran off the mat.
"Come on, Eli." She whispers while watching alongside her teammates. The referee made them bow to him and then to each other before starting the match. Robby was able to push him to the line before landing a hit.
"Time out," Eli called. Lee talks over to Miyagi Do's side knowing he wouldn't be able to come to her. "He knows all of my moves. He trained at Miyagi Do way longer than me." Eli relayed his problem.
"Then let out the Hawk. He never trained under Johnny. He doesn't know how to fight aggression with aggression." She looks up at her boyfriend.
Daniel looks over at his other students who were nodding in agreement. "You were in Cobra Kai longer than him. You each know the other's karate. Put him on defense." Daniel permitted him to do it. They bow towards each other. He walks to the center of the mat to meet Robby who was waiting for him. "You know there are other techniques besides Cobra Kai." He looks at the red that was mixed with the white.
"Duh, who do you think taught me to watch my opponent so that I can hit them with the most lethal shot?" She remembered her koi training. Sam looks at her dad, surprised that he taught Lee something to make her such a focus.
"I did not teach you that so that you could brutalize someone." He scolds.
"Let's see how much control you got when someone calls your mom a whore." She watches the referee start the fight.
"Fair." Daniel didn't know what he would do if someone said that about his mother when he was mid-fight.
Eli went at Robby, giving him no option but to block. When Eli backed him into a corner, out of desperation Robby jumped in the air and Hawk followed. Lee smiled when she realized it was Eli's favorite move. He was able to doge Robby's kick and deliver his spinning kick to the chest. She shot a smug look at Silver's pissed-off face. "Get it, Eli." She claps.
"Fight." The referee set them up again. Eli jumped to do a kick but Robby caught him and threw him to the ground. He was able to roll out from under him before Robby could hit his chest. It was interesting the way they were able to mirror each other's moves even though they hardly sparred together. There were a few close calls on both ends but they were able to block. This was the longest round in the tournament.
Eli grabs Robby's top gi that was coming undone to throw him to the ground. The clock buzzed before he could land a hit. "Save by the bell." Lee huffed in annoyance.
"Back to your side." The referee points for them to go to their sensei.
"Unbelieve." Daryl ran onto the mat. "These two amazing competitors have reached their three-minute time limit in a one-one tie, which means their championship match will be decided, for the first time since 1985 by sudden death overtime." The teens look up at the cheering crowd. At that moment, they realized this was bigger than them or their dojos. This was something the community used to thrive on. It was a big money draw and a sense of pride for them. Robby and Eli looked at each other before bowing to the crowd.
"Go to your sensei," The referee repeated. They did as they were told.
"That was incredible." Daniel complimented him.
"Any advice on the last point." He looks at his sensei.
He looks at Sam and Lee then at Johnny who was standing a few feet from them. "Give him all you got."
He nods with a smile before going to the middle of the mat. Robby took off his top gi that kept coming undone and threw it at Tory. It was a power move as he flexed his muscles. Eli looked over at the referee who shrugged since there weren't any rules against it. He took off his and threw it at Lee. She caught it and folded it up to put it on the bench behind them. He rolled his shoulders to show off his large back tattoo making the Hawk appear to be flying. Wolf whistles could be heard in the crowd.
"Ew, don't they know they're teenagers?" Demetri was disgusted by the older women that were drooling over the underage boys.
"Can't blame them." Lee watches the two attractive males meet in the center of the mat.
"Next point wins, good luck gentleman. Ready?" Referee asked. They nod as they bounce in place. Robby charges forward with some fancy kicks. Eli dodges them but falls to the ground when Robby uses his knees as a jump-off point. He got on top of Eli and was going to throw a punch when he looked up at Kenny screaming at him to knock him out.
Eli took advantage of that distraction to buckle Robby off and get to his feet. Robby stood up and reminded himself he was in a fight. Eli was moving with a slight limp, his leg was sore from Robby kicking off it. He had only been throwing punches since getting on his feet. He knew that his opponent took notice of that too and wouldn't be expecting him to use his legs. He ignored the pain to jump up and use his legs to wrap around his stomach and take him down before kicking his chest. "Winner." The referee helped him get to his feet. Miyagi Do ran onto the mat to hug him. Lee restrained herself knowing she wasn't supposed to.
"Your boy's champion, Eli Moskowitz." Daryl carried the trophy over to him.
"Yeah." He let out a scream as he held it in the air. "Get over here." He nodded to his girlfriend. Lee ran over and hugged his side that the trophy wasn't by.
"And it pushes Miyagi Do into the overall lead. It all comes down to the girl's final coming up next." Daryl reminds the crowd.
"Congratulations." She kissed him.
"Thanks, I wouldn't have been able to do it if you didn't remind me that the Hawk can come out without the mohawk." He was thankful that she reminded him that his confidence wasn't something anyone could take from him.
"That was you and all your hard work. Now, go make the Hawk fly for the crowd like you always wanted to." She nudged him forward. He put the trophy down before turning his back to the crowd and making the Hawk fly by moving his shoulders while letting out a roar.
Sam and Tory were on the mat warming up. "My money is on Sam." Mitch knew how much Sam wanted to beat Tory.
"I don't know, Nichlos is on a warpath." Devon looks at Tory who looks ready to rip out someone's throat.
"Johnny." Daniel came over to talk to Johnny. He talks to the other sensei away from his students.
"What are you doing?" Bert watches Lee on her phone.
"Texting Miguel that his girlfriend's fight is up next. I figure he gets over his wounded pride for that." She knew Sam wanted him in her corner.
"Give the guy a break, it must have taken a lot for him to admit that he couldn't fight." Mitch knew she was annoyed with Miguel for not communicating with her.
"His fingers aren't broken. He could text me back." She had been texting him to see if he was alright. She was looking like a crazy person with how times in a row she was texting him and not getting any response.
"He probably isn't looking at his phone." Bert figured he was crying in a corner.
"Why must men always make excuses for each other?" She huffed in annoyance.
"Because they have been taught to stick together. It is why in society they get ahead. It is what we women need to learn to do." Devon answered her question which was supposed to be rhetorical.
"What better way to cap off this exciting exhibition of karate than with the final match for the ages? Representing Cobra Kai, the Queen Cobra herself, Tory Nichlos coached by Sensei John Kreese and Terry Silver. And representing Miyagi Do Karate, the bonsai badass, Samatha LaRusso." He put on an Italian accent to say her last name. "Coach by her father and sensei, two times All valley champion Daniel LaRusso, who I have just been informed will be joined by Sensei Johnny Lawrence." Sam looked back at her dad in surprise.
Lee looks at Johnny in the same manner. "He said he was sorry and that I was right about letting the kids learn both karate to make their own." He was smug about it.
"Huh? What about that?" She watches Daniel run on the mat to whisper to Daryl.
"Oh, I stand corrected. Former two-time All Valley champion, Johnny Lawerence." He pointed at the man in red walking over to them. Lee was trailing behind him.
"Alright LaRusso, ready to kick some ass?" Johnny asked.
"Yes, Sensei." She nods before looking over at her father. "If that's okay with my other sensei."
"I want you to win more than anyone. Either it is defense or offense. Either Miyagi Do or Eagle Fang." Daniel smiles.
"As a Bi, I can tell you there is always the option of both." Lee pipes up.
Johnny covers her face with his hand to push her back. "Sorry, she's not good at reading a room."
"Excuse me, I'm not taking that from you." She grumbled while removing his hand.
"Don't worry about it." Daniel laughs while shaking his head. "My point is that I want you to be you. Just make sure to keep your anger in check."
She interrupted his speech to hug him. She wanted him to say that for so long. He didn't realize how much pressure he took off her shoulders. "Sorry, you were saying." She pulled back to compose herself.
"Go kick some Cobra Kai ass." He nods.
"Competitors come to take your position." The referee calls them. Sam bows to her sensei before going to the middle of the mat.
The referee made them bow to him and then to each other. The fight began. It started fiercely with them flying at each other. Sam was able to deliver a flying spinning kick to Tory's face. "Holy shit." Lee gasps at Tory falling to the ground, holding her face.
"What was that?" Daniel knew he didn't teach her that.
"A flying tornado kick." He explains.
After talking to her sensei, Tory came back to the middle of the mat. After a few block punches, Tory was able to land a hit to Sam's stomach. "Point, Nichlos. Score, One-One."
After Tory scored another hit, Sam ran to her sensei. "I keep switching styles and it's not working. What style should I do?"
"Yours. Trust your instinct." Daniel advises. "Use everything that Sensei Lawernece and I taught you."
"Your dad is right …sometimes." He felt uncomfortable agreeing with him. "You learned the rules like a pro, so now break them like an artist."
"Got it." She nods while running off.
Lee and Daniel look at Johnny in surprise. "I remember some stuff she says." He pat's Lee's head.
Sam started the round using Miyagi-Dos weird dance fighting while delivering hits that were Eagle Fang. She landed a hit to Tory's stomach that made her fly out of bounds. "No points, out of bounds." The referee called.
"Bullshit!" Lee yelled.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Referee? She was clearly in bounds when she hit her. Do they just let anyone do this?" Johnny shouted.
"Get your damn eyes checked after this, you blind moron!" Lee put her hands on her hips.
"Okay guys, calm down." Daniel saw the other referee eyeing them.
"You don't want to get kicked out." Eli put a hand on her shoulder.
"She got robbed." She grumbled.
"Yeah, it sucks but Sam is just going to have to work harder." He admits.
Sam was able to get a point in the next round with a hit to the chest. "It should be tied." She glares at the referee.
In the next round, Sam was able to take Tory to the ground. They rolled around a bit until Sam was able to get her in a hold. Tory elbowed her in the face. "Warning: an elbow to the face…. Go to your Sensei."
"Warning, that should be a point deduction!" Johnny yelled.
"Yeah, she got her eye," Lee shouted.
"I agree with you guys but we have to remain calm for Sam." Daniel didn't want to scold them and upset Johnny. Sam ran over to their corner. "Are you alright?"
"She got me good but I can still fight." She covered her injured eye.
In the next round, Sam was able to get her to the ground. Tory flew her leg back to hit her in the stomach. "Winner." The referee yelled. Tory approached Sam but she scooted away from her. Cobra Kai ran to celebrate with her.
"Of course, they are happy with that kind of bullshit win." She looks over at Silver. He was in business with her dad, so she knew what kind of shady shit he would do to come out on top. She looks at the referee, realizing that he did all of Tory's matches. She found that odd since they were supposed to be randomly selected.
Johnny and Daniel guide a shocked Sam off the mat. "Give it up for your first female champ, Tory Nichlos," Daryl announced, making the crowd go wild. Lee looks at Tory's face to see her look down at the trophy in awe. "The winner and still the most badass name for a dojo Cobra Kai." Kreese took the trophy.
"Thank you. Thank you." Silver took the mic. "We couldn't be prouder of our hard-won victory and we're just as proud to announce we'll soon be opening a Cobra Kai franchise throughout the entire Valley, so every one of you young women and men here can be part of our champion dojo and learn Cobra Kai's way of the fist. Thank you." To Eagle Fang and Miyagi's horror, the crowd chanted Cobra Kai.
"This sucks. I won the All Valley and I feel like shit." Eli was sitting in Lee's living room.
"It's my fault." Lee looked down at her lap.
"That's not true." Demetri was feeling in the dumps too but he didn't want them to feel bad.
"Yes, it is. I lost my cool. I got disqualified and my points were taken away. I'm not saying I could have won it all but I let Piper win that match. Even though she couldn't fight, in the next round she was supposed to go against another Cobra Kai girl so that's more points to them. If I played to win then you guys would have had more points than them. Eli winning would mean that you won the Grand Championship." She was beating herself up over it. It was why she was so emotional over Sam's fight.
"If I won my part in the skill challenge that would be true too." Eli brought up.
"Let's not do this. Everyone on the team could use that argument. Let's be honest, Cobra Kai would have come back with another name, which is what we could do. Didn't someone say something tonight about Miyagi's Fangs?" Demetri points out.
"I don't know. I don't think Sensei LaRusso would go for that. He is all about honor." Eli knew Daniel would want to stick to his word.
"Demetri right…. Sometimes." She never liked admitting her know-it-all friend was right because it made his head grow. "We can't let the what-ifs get to us. You won the All Valley." She grabs her boyfriend's hands to pull him up. "Demetri texted everyone to come over. We're having a party." She connected her phone to the sound system to blast Cardi B.
"I don't know." Eli shrugged.
"Come on… the champ has to have a more triumphant attitude than that." She slapped his chest.
"Everyone's texted. So get hyped because people are heading over. The guys are bringing over kegs." Demetri had people accepting fast. They wanted to party for Eli and to take their mind off their sorrows.
"Alright, the champ is here." He cheers.
"I'm going to change." She was in her sweats. "I'll order a bunch of takeouts." She walks up the stairs while ordering food.
"Did Miguel answer?" Eli looks at Demetri.
"Not yet, the guy has been silent. I wonder if he's more hurt than Johnny let on." Demetri looks at his phone.
"I don't think so, no ambulance came. He'll miss out on a good party." Eli went to take the hard bottles out of the cabinet. "Don't mention it to Lee, you know how she gets it."
"Tonight is about fun." He dances to the music awkwardly, making Eli laugh.
People came pouring in and the food was delivered when Lee finally walked down the stairs. She was in a pair of tight jeans and a white bracelet. "Now I feel like a champ." Eli pulls her down on his lap. She laughed and kissed him, not caring about all the eyes on them.
