First of all, I would like to say that I am Brazilian, but since most of the stories on this site are in English, I will try to do my best to write in that language as well. If you notice any grammatical errors, please forgive me, I'm doing the best I can. Hope you like it.
The three days of rest in Barcelona weren't exactly three days of rest, because Sensei Kim made them all train until they threw up. Tory didn't complain. She knew she needed to be at her best if she was going to face Zara again. But it wasn't like she could complain either. Sensei Kreese hadn't been around as much these past few days. He probably had his own shit to deal with, including Terry Silver's presence at Sekai Takai. Tory hoped her Sensei could sort that out soon. She couldn't stand it if Silver decided to interfere in the tournament again. That damn bastard. Tory hated him.
Anyway, it wasn't time to think about that now. She needed to rest. Tomorrow the tournament would start again and she had no other option but to win. For her mother and especially for Brandon. So, she quickly fell asleep and went to sleep.
Tory ended up waking up to the sound of her cell phone ringing. Who was calling her at six in the morning? She was ready to curse when she saw the name on the call.
Brandon.
"Hey, B." - She greeted him, answering the phone. - "Did something happen?" - Tory asked, worried.
He never called at this time.
"I'm sorry I called at this time, sister." - Brandon apologized and Tory smiled at her little brother's sweetness. - "Miss Parton told me it was still very early in Barcelona, but I really wanted to talk to you." - He explained himself and the older girl could already imagine the guilty look on his face.
"It's okay, little brother." - She reassured him, feeling at peace when she heard the voice of the little boy who was her responsibility. - "What did you want to tell me?" - Tory asked curiously.
"It's just that I wanted to wish you good luck." - Brandon confessed and Tory just wanted to be able to hug her little brother right now.
''Thank you, B.'' - She thanked him sincerely. - ''That means a lot.'' - Tory added, letting out a sigh.
''I'm sure you'll be the champion of this Seki Taka.'' - Brandon stated and she laughed when she heard him pronouncing the name of the tournament wrong.
''It's Sekai Takai, B.'' - Tory corrected him, laughing.
''The name is too hard to say.'' - He complained and Tory didn't need to be next to him to know that her little brother was pouting now. - ''Will I ever be able to see you fight?'' - Brandon asked and she swallowed hard.
Tory hadn't told him that Sekai Takai would be televised. After what she did to the girl from Hirobukan, she thought it best not to let Brandon watch the tournament. It was too violent and the little boy was only 9 years old. He was too young and she, as his older sister, should protect him from certain things. That included keeping him from watching a tournament where people could get seriously hurt or even killed. At least that's what that guy named Mike Barnes said.
"Maybe someday." - That was all Tory said as he thought about it.
''Sure.'' - Brandon agreed readily. - ''Tory..." - The little boy hesitated, pausing slightly. - "Sometimes, I miss you and mommy so much that I feel like crying." - He admitted and Tory's heart ached when she heard her little brother mention their mother.
This was a subject she didn't like to talk about. I mean... Tory preferred not to talk about it. Thinking about Grace Nichols made her break. Her mother was everything to her and now she simply wasn't here. Tory still had nightmares about the day she walked into her apartment and saw her mother lying on the floor. Cold and dead. But Brandon was her little brother and if there was anyone who understood how much their mother was missing in their lives, it was him.
''Me too.'' - She took a deep breath, thinking about their mother. - ''But as soon as I win this tournament, I'll run back to get you.'' - She finished, hoping Brandon would believe her words.
''You promise?'' - He asked as innocently as a 9-year-old might ask.
"I promise." - Tory promised, before hearing her little brother say he had to hang up because it was already past nine o'clock at night in the Valley.
They said goodbye with Brandon saying he loved her and that he was waiting for her.
When the call ended, Tory allowed herself to cry for a moment. There was no one in her hotel room and it was all too much for her to handle. So, she let the tears fall and just stayed silent, lying on the bed and staring at the ceiling of her room. After deciding that she had been doing this for too long, the Cobra Kai captain got up and got in the shower to take a shower. She needed to pull herself together. Today was the big day. If she won the Sekai Takai, she would be able to keep Brandon's custody. That was all that mattered right now and Tory needed to look her best.
The girl was changing her clothes when she heard her cell phone vibrate, indicating that she had received a message. It was still seven thirty in the morning. She was sure she heard Sensei Kreese mention that the tournament started at ten in the morning. She wasn't late. Breakfast at the hotel didn't start until eight. Who the hell was texting her? Unable to contain her curiosity, Tory picked up her phone and saw that the message she had received had been on Instagram. God, she hadn't used Instagram in a while. Why would someone send her a message on an app she barely used? It was best to get this question out of the way once and for all. With that, she picked up her phone and opened her direct message, only to see a message from Zara Malik:
''Check out my stories, bitch.''
This had to be a joke. There was no way that bitch was bothering her online right now. Tory knew she shouldn't look, but she was too curious to ignore the message. So, she went to Zara's profile.
The Iron Dragons captain had over two million followers. That must be why she kept blowing kisses when she won a fight and everyone seemed to love her. She was famous in the Karate world. Fuck. Tory didn't care about that. She would still kick her ass if they ever faced each other again. Clutching her phone tightly, Tory decided to just watch the damn story right away. But when she saw it, her jaw dropped. Zara was with Robby. She had posted three stories with him. The first one was of Robby alone with the caption "Look how handsome the captain of Miyagi Do is." The second one was of Zara and Robby taking a selfie together and the third one... Well, the third one was the picture that made Tory kick the foot of her bed with all her might. It was a picture of Zara kissing Robby.
What the fuck? Were they together now? Wait. Why did Zara send this to her? Okay, they didn't like each other and were kind of rivals, but it seemed like that bitch wanted Tory to see these pictures. It even looked like it was a set-up. No, it didn't. It was obvious that it was a set-up. If you look closely at the photo, it doesn't even look like Robby wanted to kiss her. He didn't even have her hands on him. No, seriously. If Zara had the audacity to use Robby to destabilize her, Tory was going to kill her and she was going to do it now.
Stomping hard, Tory Nichols took the elevator and soon arrived at the area of the hotel where all the competitors were having breakfast. The place was still empty and the Cobra Kai captain just sat at one of the tables, waiting for Zara Malik to arrive. When the girl appeared, she had a cell phone in her hand and was probably recording something. Tory wasted no time and went after her rival, snatching the cell phone from her hand.
''Just give it back to me and I promise I won't kick your ass too hard today.'' - Zara warned, turning to face Tory.
''Do you want it?'' - Tory smiled ironically and held her cell phone with her fingertips. - ''Just take it.'' - She said, before dropping the cell phone and making it shatter on the floor. - ''Oops, I think it broke.'' - Tory teased, taking the opportunity to step on the cell phone again.
''I'm going to kick your ass, you bitch.'' - Zara promised, going after Tory and trying to kick her.
The kick grazed Tory's face, but she didn't back down and just tried to attack Zara too. The Iron Dragons captain might be good in tournaments, but she wasn't that good in street fights. Tory was. There were no rules here and she would do whatever it took to win. Unfortunately, the fight didn't even last fifteen seconds. The reason? Robby Keene had just appeared and stood between them.
"What's going on?" - Robby asked with both arms outstretched, trying to keep the girls from attacking each other again.
"Your crazy ex-girlfriend broke my phone." - Zara accused, pointing to the broken phone on the floor.
"What?" - Robby turned to look at Tory with confusion written all over his face.
"Stay out of this, Robby." - Tory asked, not taking her eyes off Zara.
"I just want to understand what happened, Tor." - Robby insisted and Tory rolled her eyes.
The damn nickname. Again. Maybe it would be better if she just told him what happened right away.
"What happened was that this bitch sent me a direct on Instagram asking me to look at her stories." - Tory explained, feeling her irritation rise again. - "And in her stories there was a picture of you two kissing." - She finished, glaring at Zara angrily.
"Photo?" - Judging by his reaction, Robby obviously didn't know that. - "Zara, why did you take a picture of us and send it to Tory?" - He asked, turning to face the Iron Dragons captain.
"Are you really going to ignore the fact that she broke my phone?" - She replied, ignoring Robby's question.
"You're lucky it's not your face." - Tory huffed, still irritated.
"I think you forgot who kicked your ass in the opening match." - Zara teased and Tory was ready to attack the girl again, when she heard Robby's voice.
"You better go, Zara." - He stated and both Zara and Tory's eyes widened.
She didn't expect her ex-boyfriend to defend her.
"You know what?" - Zara scoffed with a humorless laugh. - "Whatever." - She continued, shrugging. - ''Just know that I won't forget this and when the time comes, you'll pay.'' - Zara threatened, looking hatefully at the Cobra Kai captain.
''I'm scared to death.'' - Tory scoffed and Zara gave her one last look before turning her back and leaving.
As soon as the former couple was alone, an awkward silence settled in. There was a lot to be said, but all they could do was look at each other. It was Robby who broke the silence:
''We should talk.'' - He said, looking at the girl.
''I don't know if that's a good idea.'' - Tory replied, sighing.
''Please.'' - Robby begged and she looked away.
Tory Nichols knew she shouldn't agree to this, but at the same time, she didn't want Robby to go to the qualifiers with his mind on something else. She cared too much about him to see him get hurt because he was out of focus. Besides, a part of her wanted to understand how Zara got that photo. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea for them to talk and clear things up.
"Okay." - She finally agreed. - "But not here." - Tory added, indicating with her eyes for him to follow her.
It was probably a terrible idea to take her ex-boyfriend to her hotel room, but it's not like they had anywhere else to talk. The hotel was packed with Sekai Takai competitors and she couldn't risk any of her fellow Cobra Kai members seeing her and Robby together, especially Kim Da-Eun. God, if the bitch found out that Tory talked to Robby, she was dead. She couldn't risk it. Her hotel room was really her only option.
''Did you get a room all to yourself?'' - Robby asked, entering Tory's room.
''Yeah.'' - She nodded, closing the bedroom door.
''What luck.'' - Robby commented with a smile. - ''I have to share with Hawk, Miguel and Demetri.'' - He said, looking at Tory. - ''The worst part is that Demetri snores like hell.'' - Robby added, making Tory laugh.
''I can kind of imagine that.'' - She laughed and Robby smiled, seeing the girl he liked stop in front of him.
''Look...'' - He started, suddenly becoming serious. - ''I shouldn't have gone out with Zara.'' - Robby sighed and Tory snorted when she heard him say her rival's name.
''We're not together anymore.'' - She shrugged, as if it was no big deal. - ''You don't owe me an explanation.'' - Tory stated, even though inside she was burning with jealousy.
''If I don't owe you an explanation, why did you get so angry and break her phone?'' - Robby asked, wanting to understand the situation.
The boy couldn't understand Tory now. There were times when she seemed like she didn't care about him and that hurt him more than he would like to admit, but there were times when it seemed like she would set the world on fire because of him. He just wanted to understand.
"I didn't want that bitch to use you to destabilize me." - Tory replied, crossing her arms under her chest.
"To destabilize you? What do you mean?" - Robby looked at her with confusion.
"That sucks, Robby." - She complained, because she didn't know exactly how to explain this without exposing herself too much. - ''She knows that I'm her main rival in the tournament." - Tory continued, trying to explain. - ''And she knows...'' - She hesitated, pausing slightly. - ''She knows that if she messes with you, she'll make me angry.'' - Tory confessed and Robby raised his eyebrows at her.
''Make you angry?'' - He questioned, surprised. - ''Since when do you care? Aren't you dating that idiot Korean?'' - Robby blurted out, remembering Kwon's words at the tournament:
''Why do you think Tory didn't even look at you today?''
It may sound stupid, but Robby really thought Tory was dating Kwon. That's why he decided to go out with Zara. Only because he had gotten jealous of his ex-girlfriend in the first place.
''I'm not dating Kwon, you idiot.'' - Tory cursed him, feeling offended.
How could Robby think something like that?
''That's not what he told me.'' - Robby said and Tory walked around the room, finally understanding what Kwon and Zara were trying to do.
''They're using us.'' - She realized and Robby made a confused face when she heard that statement. - ''Kwon knows he'll get inside your head and make you feel bad if he tells you that he and I are together.'' - Tory explained and the boy nodded. - ''And Zara knows that you're my ex-boyfriend and that getting close to you will destabilize me.'' - She concluded and Robby ran his hand through his hair, stopping to think about it.
It made sense. Actually, it made a lot of sense. It was the world championship and for some dojos, that was worth anything.
Robby still remembers one of John Kreese and Terry Silver's classes before they competed in the All Valley:
''You're going to learn how to get inside the heads of your opponents and throw them off balance.''
John Kreese was with Cobra Kai and Terry Silver was with the Iron Dragons. He had no doubt that they had taught their new students this lesson as well.
Tory was right. Kwon and Zara used them.
"So that means you and Kwon never..." - Robby was going to ask just to clear up that doubt that tormented him practically every night, but Tory interrupted him.
"I've never been with Kwon." - She assured, looking at him. - "Not here and not when we were in Korea." - Tory added and Robby could see the truth behind her words.
"I believe you." - He let out a sigh, looking at her. - "I'm sorry I thought you and Kwon were... You know." - Robby apologized, feeling stupid for having believed that idiot. - "I saw you guys talking and I got so jealous." - He admitted and Tory almost smiled at that.
Almost.
"I understand." - That's what Tory ended up saying, because she really did.
She felt the same way when she saw her ex-boyfriend talking to Zara.
"That's why I agreed to go out with Zara." - Robby explained, swallowing hard.
"So that picture is real? Did you really kiss?" - Tory questioned, unable to contain her curiosity about it any longer.
"Yes and no." - He answered and Tory rolled her eyes. - "Zara was giving me advice about you and she was really being nice to me." - Just hearing that made Tory want to vomit. - "I thought she just wanted to be my friend and then she kissed me without me expecting it." - Robby confessed and Tory really wanted to punch Zara in the face right now. - "But I pulled away almost immediately, because I didn't want to be with any other girl other than you." - He looked at her and Tory sat on the bed to think about it. - "Are you upset?" - Robby asked, sitting down next to his ex-girlfriend.
Upset? Of course she was upset. Who wouldn't be? That bitch kissed the boy she liked and even though Robby had walked away, it still happened. But she couldn't completely blame him for it. She was the one who broke up with him. Technically, they weren't together anymore. Not to mention that anyone who looked at Robby now could see how much he was hurting.
"Of course I'm upset, there's no way I can't be." - Tory admitted, looking into his green eyes. - "But I think I'm more angry at Zara than anything else." - She added, because it was true.
It was so true.
Fuck. Who was she kidding? Tory Nichols could never stay mad at Robby Keene for long, especially with him looking at her with that lost puppy dog face.
"I'm sorry, Tor." - He apologized for what seemed like the thousandth time and held her hand, making Tory's heart race at the same time.
She was so screwed. Fuck.
"I know." - Tory looked away, unable to look at him anymore. - "I just wish things were easier." - She took a deep breath and a shiver ran down her spine when she felt Robby's fingers caress the back of her hand.
This way it would be impossible to be alone in this room with him. The touch of the green-eyed boy still made her soft.
''Maybe it's not that complicated.'' - Robby stated and Tory turned to look at him. - ''I don't care if you went back to Cobra Kai and if we're on opposite sides now.'' - He added and the girl was really surprised by that.
The first time they had broken up was because she didn't want to leave Cobra Kai. What had changed?
''You don't care? Why?'' - She asked, because she really wanted to understand about this.
'Because I realized that it doesn't change how I feel about you.'' - Robby confessed and Tory felt like her heart could stop at any moment now. - ''I know I've never said this before, but...'' - He hesitated, pausing slightly and stopping his gaze on the blonde-haired girl. - ''I love you, Tor.'' - Robby declared, releasing the words that had been choked up since the day Tory left Miyagi Do. - ''I just wish I had realized this sooner.'' - He lamented and Tory saw the moment tears began to form in his green eyes.
If Kim Da-Eun had seen this, she would probably say that Tory Nichols was soft, but there was no way she was going to let Robby Keene think that she didn't love him back. Tory knew he was her weakness and at that moment, she didn't care. God, she just wanted to kiss him.
''I love you too.'' - That's what Tory ended up saying and at the same time, Robby broke into a huge smile.
They smiled at each other and it was she who took the initiative to lean in to kiss him. Robby wasted no time and deepened the kiss, bringing their bodies closer and gently caressing the face of the girl he loved. Tory missed her ex-boyfriend so much that she didn't even think about what she was doing, deciding to just let her will prevail. She turned to look at his beauty and smiled, sitting on Robby's lap and remembering when they kissed inside Terry Silver's borrowed car. That post-prom brought back so many good memories that sometimes she just wanted to stop that night. It was all so perfect that she often relived that night in her dreams.
But being with the green-eyed boy here and now made her realize how real it all was. She loved him and even though things were impossible between them now, she knew that Robby Keene loved her too.
And that was enough. At least, for now.
"Nichols!" - An aggressive knock came at the door, which made the Cobra Kai captain practically jump off Robby's lap.
"Shit." - She cursed, looking at her ex-boyfriend with red lips. - "Who is it?" - Tory shouted, looking apprehensively at the door.
"It's me." - The voice answered and Tory sighed in relief when she realized it was Sensei Kreese's voice.
"I'm coming, Sensei." - She warned and indicated with her eyes for Robby to hide under the bed. - "Hurry up." - Tory whispered and Robby immediately obeyed. - "Did something happen?" - She asked, as soon as she opened the door.
"Nothing happened." - Sensei Kreese raised his eyebrows at her, stopping to analyze the girl's expression. - "Sensei Kim was wondering why you were taking so long and asked me to check on you." - He explained, realizing right away that there was something strange with his favorite student. - "Besides, I need to make sure my champion is eating properly." - John Kreese continued and Tory swallowed hard. - "Have you had breakfast, Nichols?" - He asked, looking at her.
''Not yet, Sensei.'' - Tory replied, shaking her head. - ''But I promise that I'll be down soon to join the others.'' - She assured and Sensei Kreese smiled.
''Don't take too long.'' - He warned and Tory nodded. - ''Or the next person who might come looking for you might be Sensei Kim.'' - Sensei Kreese added with a serious look, before turning his back on her and walking away.
He knew. Of course he knew.
Tory was lucky that it was him and not Sensei Kim who came here. She could have searched her room right away, just to have the pleasure of finding Robby and throwing in her face how weak she was for still caring about him.
Damn. She better stop playing with luck.
"Robby, you better go." - Tory sighed, seeing that Sensei Kreese had already taken the elevator back to the place where the fighters had breakfast.
"Are we okay?" - He asked and she put her hand on his shoulder.
"We are, but we'll wait for the tournament to end to sort things out." - Tory replied and even though Robby didn't want to leave her side now, he knew it was the right thing to do. - "Until then, just stay focused." - She asked and the boy put his hand on top of hers.
"I'll go." - He said, opening one of his biggest smiles and gently pulling the girl's hand to his chest. - ''Good luck, Tor.'' - Robby said, planting a kiss on the back of her hand and finally leaving his ex-girlfriend's room.
Or was it current? Well, it doesn't matter. What matters is that they were on good terms now.
After Robby left, the Cobra Kai captain stayed in her room for about ten minutes so no one would suspect anything and then also went down for breakfast. She ignored the suspicious looks that Kim Da-Eun gave her. The bitch could think whatever she wanted. Tory didn't care.
''You took a while.'' - Kwon commented, watching Tory join the table where all the Cobra Kai were sitting.
''I was calling my little brother.'' - She lied, knowing that Sensei Kim was listening.
Kwon didn't say anything in response, which she sincerely appreciated. Tory didn't want to talk to him right now. How dare he lie to Robby saying he was going out with her? He was an idiot. The worst part is that she knew it the moment she met him. Well... Whatever.
When they arrived at the arena where the Sekai Takai qualifiers would be held, most of the teams were already there, including Miyagi Do. This time, Sensei Larusso was with them and not just him, but also Sensei Chozen Toguchi and Kenny Payne. They must have called the boy to replace Devon. Her pupil really did the right thing and as her mentor, Tory was proud. But on the other hand, a part of her was also worried. She knew from their confident looks that Miyagi Do had become a threat again now. If she and Cobra Kai wanted to win, they would need to give it their all.
And then there was the Iron Dragons. Axel Kovacevic was shy and didn't like to show himself, but this way of his made him seem even more threatening. Zara Malik looked like she could kill someone right now. Tory wasn't stupid. She knew very well who Zara wanted to kill. Not to mention that the scoundrel Terry Silver was still there. Right next to them.
With all these things happening outside of the tournament, Gunther finally announced the start of the elimination phase:
''Are you ready for the last day of competitions?'' - The main organizer of Sekai Takai asked and the cheers of excitement from the audience in the background were heard. - ''Today we will have the elimination phase with the eight dojos that are left in the tournament.'' - He announced, pointing to the eight teams that were positioned around the mat. - ''To define the teams that will face each other in the quarterfinals, we will hold a draw.'' - Gunther informed, pointing to the panel and the names of the eight dojos appeared. - ''The matches will be between teams and the entire team will position themselves inside the hexagon, but only one competitor from each team can fight at a time.'' - He explained and the fighters nodded. - ''The team that gets three points first wins and advances to the semifinals!'' - Gunther finished and at the same moment the panel lit up, starting the draw and defining the first match.
Furia de Pantera x Redentores
The Spanish team was going to face the Brazilian dojo and from what everyone saw of the Spanish team's performance during the tournament, they were unlikely to be left out of the semifinals.
Miyagi Do x Cobra Kai
When this match was set, Robby Keene's heart stopped. He didn't want to face Tory. They had just made up and now they were just going to have to fight each other. It wasn't that he didn't want to face that idiot Korean. Of course he did and he was more than ready to get revenge for Kwon lying to him, but he knew that defeating Cobra Kai meant defeating Tory. Deep down, he had already thought about it. Ever since he saw the girl he loved wearing the Cobra Kai gi, he had thought about it. Robby just didn't imagine that this would happen so soon and right after they had made up. Why was life so fucked up when it came to them?
Iron Dragons x Hirobukan
No one needed to watch this match to already know the result. Their female captain wasn't even there. She was still recovering from the injuries Tory had caused in the King of the Mountain match. They only had the male captain and honestly he wasn't even close to Axel Kovacevic's talent. It was more than obvious that the Iron Dragons were going to crush them.
Tiger Strike x Tempete de Viperes
Team Russia was going to face Team France. This was a match that no one really knew what to expect. The two teams were practically on par and neither dojo was a big threat to the tournament. Whoever advanced from this match certainly wouldn't make it to the finals.
A few minutes later the scoreboard lit up, showing that the match between Furia de Pantera and Redentores had just started. Tory chose to watch the match in silence in an attempt to focus on the match that was about to come. She knew it would be tough. God, she really didn't want to face Robby. This sucked.
"Hey, American." - Kwon approached with a mocking smile. - "Don't hate me for kicking your ex-boyfriend's ass." - He teased and Tory turned to face him.
"Why did you lie to him saying that you and I were together?" - She questioned, being direct.
"Why do you care? Isn't he the enemy?" - Kwon retorted, without losing his composure.
"I don't like lies." - Tory snorted and the Korean scoffed.
"If you can get inside your enemy's head to end him, you do it." - He stated and the girl rolled her eyes. - "No mercy, huh?" - Kwon blinked and Tory just wanted to kick him.
"You're much more of an idiot than I thought." - She blurted and Kwon laughed, before becoming serious.
"You can think whatever you want." - He sighed with a look of fake boredom. - ''But you're the captain and you're going to give it your all against him.'' - Kwon pointed his finger at her and glared at her. - ''Or you'll regret it.'' - He threatened and Tory just kept her gaze on him, not saying anything in response.
Had Kwon Jae-Sung really just threatened her? He was a complete idiot. I don't know how she let herself be fooled.
''Fuck you, Kwon!'' - That's what she ended up saying, walking past him and leaving him behind.
She didn't have time to deal with Kwon now. It was obvious that she was going to give it her all. Tory needed to win. For her mother and for Brandon. She could love Robby as much as she wanted, but her family would always come first. That wasn't even up for discussion.
Furia de Pantera ended up defeating the Redentores team by three to one and now it would be Cobra Kai and Miyagi Do's turn to fight. Neither of the two dojos expected to face each other now, but if that's how the draw decided, then so be it.
"Nichols, you start!" - Sensei Kim ordered, looking at the girl.
"Yes, Sensei." - Tory agreed, knowing that it wouldn't be smart to question Kim Da-Eun's orders now.
The girl wasn't stupid. It was obvious that the bitch would keep an eye on her the whole time. She knew that Tory's weakness was the pretty boy with green eyes.
Then the six Miyagi Do fighters and the six Cobra Kai fighters began to position themselves on the sides of the hexagon. Tory stood in the center of the hexagon, after all she would be the first to fight. Robby too. Wait... What? She and Robby were going to fight? With each other? Shit. She was aware that she could face the Miyagi Do team and she was even prepared for it, but in no way was she prepared to fight him. Tory looked at Sensei Kreese for help, but he just nodded at her and said:
''This fight is yours, Nichols.'' - Sensei Kreese encouraged her and she swallowed hard when her gaze fell on Robby again.
She really didn't want to fight him, but Robby ended up thinking otherwise. He didn't want any of his teammates to score on Tory. Not that it would be easy, but if it happened, he was sure that the woman who had already made Tory break her hand would punish her again, thinking that she didn't give her all. Therefore, he decided that no matter how difficult it was, the safest scenario would be for him to fight her. Robby wouldn't attack or try to score on her, no matter what happened.
''On your marks.'' - The referee called and the young couple got into a fighting stance. - ''Shake hands.'' - The referee ordered and both Robby and Tory bowed. - ''Ready?'' - He asked and by the look on their faces, it was clear that neither of them were ready. - ''And fight!'' - The referee ordered and neither of them attacked immediately.
''What are you waiting for, Nichols?'' - Sensei Kim yelled from outside the mat and with that, the girl was forced to go after him.
Tory attacked him with a few punches, but Robby dodged them all. He was only using Miyagi Do defense and from what Tory knew of him, she knew that her ex-boyfriend wasn't going to attack her. Still, she did her best to give it her all. Tory didn't want to repeat the incident with the solid stone again. Her hand hurt just thinking about it and both Sensei Kim and Kwon were keeping an eye on her. The problem was that the fact that Robby didn't attack her back was limiting her a lot.
"Attack me back." - Tory whispered, practically begging him with her voice to do it.
"I can't." - Robby whispered back and Tory snorted, attacking him again.
Anyone who watched the fight could see that Robby Keene didn't want to attack Tory Nichols. The fight was practically an attack against defense, but defending yourself always ended up tiring you out a lot more. Because of that, Tory ended up landing a kick on his leg that ended up making Robby fall to the ground.
"No points!" - The referee ruled, because since it was a full contact tournament, points were only worth it if they were scored from the waist up.
"Swap with me, Robby." - Sam asked and Tory thanked the heavens for doing that.
Robby looked at Tory for confirmation and the girl's look said it all. So, he just sighed in frustration and touched Sam's hand, making her take his place. Unlike the Miyagi Do captain, Sam started attacking right away. Tory was pleased with that. It was much easier to fight that way. The girls exchanged a few punches and kicks, but they all ended in no points. Tory had been on the mat for over four minutes and she was starting to feel a little tired. If she kept fighting like that, Sam could score a point on her at any moment. With that, after she dodged a punch that went very close to her face, Tory ran to switch places with one of her Cobra Kai teammates.
"Tags Kwon." - Sensei Kim ordered and Tory hesitated for a moment, because she didn't want Kwon to face Sam, they were on good terms now and she knew what the Korean was capable of. - "Now!" - The woman's voice was firmer and Tory had no choice but to obey.
Tory thought Sam would run when he saw Kwon, but to her surprise, the girl decided to face him. She had always admired courage and so she smiled genuinely at Samantha Larusso when she saw her in a fighting stance. Unfortunately, Kwon was much stronger and it took him only a few seconds to land a strong kick in her ribs.
''Point!'' - The referee signaled and the scoreboard on the side changed, showing that it was one to zero for Cobra Kai.
Samantha managed to get up, despite the difficulty and went to Miguel, tagging him so that he would be the next to fight. When he saw that Miguel was the next to fight, Kwon ran and tagged Yoon. He did this because he knew that running away from Miguel right after he had kicked his girlfriend would anger him more than fighting him now. His strategy worked, because Miguel was pissed off. That wasn't a problem. Yoon fought better against opponents who were angry. The fight between Yoon and Miguel was interesting. Both were worthy opponents, but Yoon was having a slight advantage. Realizing this, Miguel decided to switch places with Hawk.
After that, the two dojos decided to win by exhaustion. The opponents faced each other for thirty seconds and then tagged another teammate. Yoon tagged Min-Seok, Hawk tagged Demetri, Min-Seok tagged Chung-Hee, Demetri tagged Kenny, Chung-Hee tagged the other Cobra Kai girl, Kenny tagged Demetri, the other Cobra Kai girl tagged Min-Seok, Demetri tagged Miguel, and Min-Seok tagged Chung-Hee again. So far, the match was still one to zero for the Korean team. With these quick exchanges, no one had managed to score points on anyone.
Tory kind of thought it best that none of her dojo mates tagged her again. The Cobra Kai captain could admit that she wasn't able to give her best against the Miyagi Do team. She even wanted to, but looking at the faces of Robby, Sam, and Devon, who was standing like a sort of helper next to Johnny Lawrence, made her realize that a part of her cared more about them than she would like to admit. She tried to get back to focusing on the fight, only to see Miguel land a punch on Chung-Hee's chest.
At the same time that the referee shouted "point", the scoreboard changed, indicating that the match was now tied at one to one.
Chung-Hee left the circle and went towards Yoon, touching his hand so that the Korean could take his place to face Miguel. They fought again for a few seconds, but Yoon had a fighting style very similar to Miguel's and this kind of made things difficult. Because of this, Miguel decided to switch places with Hawk again.
This decision ended up being a great choice, because Hawk's acrobatics were unpredictable and, like it or not, Yoon's style was more precise. This contrast between them helped Hawk, who ended up landing a double kick to Yoon's face.
"Point!" - The referee determined and the scoreboard changed, showing that it was two to one for Miyagi Do.
Sensei Kreese and Sensei Kim exchanged glances, starting to worry. If Miyagi Do scored any more points, they would win. If they didn't want to lose, maybe the best choice would be to bet on Kwon. The only reliable ones besides him were Tory and Yoon, but it was clear that Tory wasn't in the right mental state to participate in this fight and Yoon's face was starting to swell after Hawk's kick. The best thing now was for Kwon to fight.
''Kwon Jae-Sung.'' - Sensei Kim called his name and the Cobra Kai captain looked at her. - ''Only you will fight now and you need to score two points.'' - She warned and he smiled arrogantly, knowing that he was fully capable of doing that.
''Finish them.'' - Sensei Kreese ordered and Tory who was next to him in the hexagon did her best to hide the discomfort she felt upon hearing that. - ''No mercy.'' - He stated and Kwon entered the circle, right after Yoon tagged him.
Kwon went with all his violence towards Hawk, but the boy with the mohawk was also very fast. Even so, he knew that it wouldn't be a good fight with the Cobra Kai captain now. He had gotten very tired from his previous fight with Yoon. So, he ran and tagged Miguel. Remembering what Kwon did to Sam, Miguel also attacked him angrily. It seemed like one wanted to finish the other off, but Kwon was determined and after more than a minute of intense fighting, the Korean kicked Miguel in the face.
Miguel threw his hair back angrily and looked at the scoreboard on the side. Now the fight was tied at two to two. He looked at Robby and knew that his new brother could do it.
''Show them why you're our captain.'' - He asked, touching Robby's shoulder and the boy nodded, grateful for his new brother's trust.
Robby and Kwon glared at each other with hatred and it was the Korean who started attacking. They were moving in all areas of the circle, while the other fighters from Miyagi Do and Cobra Kai were around. Trying to do something unpredictable, Kwon tried to kick Robby with a five hundred and forty degree kick. This move could literally rip an opponent's head off, but Robby managed to dodge the move by rolling to the side. The person right behind Robby Keene was none other than Tory Nichols. Kwon's kick came within inches of hitting her head. Luckily she ducked at the last moment or he would have actually hit her. This shook her in a way she didn't think possible, because she knew that if the kick had landed, she could have been unconscious or even worse. This idiot would do anything to win. Seeing the fear in the eyes of the girl he loved was enough to give Robby the fuel he needed. So, when Kwon tried to kick Robby again with one of his acrobatics, the green-eyed boy waited for the right moment to jump and kick him too. The two practically kicked each other in the air at the same time, but only one of the two ended up hitting the other.
It was Robby.
"Point!" - The referee indicated when he saw Kwon lying in the
center of the circle with his hand on his bleeding nose. - ''The winner is Miyagi Do!'' - He grabbed Robby's hand and raised it in the air.
When the referee let go of his hand, the entire Miyagi Do team ran to hug him. Tory watched the scene and sighed. Cobra Kai lost. How was she going to fight for Brandon's custody now? She went to Korea to be the captain and try to win for Cobra Kai, but she ended up losing anyway. With her, things were always like this. No matter what she did, she always lost and ended up alone. Could she possibly win for once in her life?
It wasn't that she wasn't happy for Robby. Of course she was. He deserved to win. Damn, if anyone deserved to win, it was him, but why did life have to be so shitty when it came to her? Tory literally didn't have a second of peace. Taking a deep breath, she prepared to go to the bathroom to take a moment for herself, when she heard Sam's voice calling her:
''Tory!'' - She called her and the captain of Cobra Kai turned to look at her.
''Sam, I don't want to talk right now.'' - Tory replied and Sam sighed.
''I understand, but I just wanted to say that we're on your side.'' - She assured, looking at her. - ''I talked to my mom today and she told me that she could help you if you needed help with your brother's custody.'' - Sam revealed and Tory raised her eyebrows at her.
''How do you know that?'' - She asked, because she doesn't remember telling Sam about it.
''Robby told us and...'' - Sam confessed, pausing when she saw Tory's face. - ''He just wanted to help.'' - She continued, explaining herself. - ''He was so worried about you.'' - Sam continued and Tory looked away. - ''We all were.'' - She finished, hoping that Tory would believe her.
''Thank you, Sam.'' - Tory thanked her sincerely. - ''Really.'' - She gave a slight smile and Sam nodded, before walking past the girl and letting her continue her walk to the bathroom.
She was almost there when someone else stopped her.
"I was looking for you." - Robby stated and seeing the boy she loved made her bite her lip. - "Can I hug you?" - He asked and she nodded in agreement, feeling his arms wrap around her waist. - "I just wish we were on the same team now." - Robby sighed and she rested her head on his shoulder.
"I know." - Tory agreed, still in his arms. - "Still, I wanted to wish you congratulations." - She congratulated him, because she knew he deserved that victory. - "Kwon must have a bloody nose by now." - Tory tried to joke and he smiled.
They looked at each other for a moment, while Robby gently caressed the face of the girl he loved. When the desire between them became too much, he leaned in to kiss her, but before their lips met, a familiar voice interrupted them.
"Sensei Kreese and Sensei Kim are calling for you." - Yoon warned and Tory immediately moved away from Robby.
"I have to go." - She swallowed hard and looked at Robby, leaving with Yoon and leaving the Miyagi Do captain behind.
One of the coolest things about Yoon is that he didn't meddle in anyone's life. Of course he realized what Tory was doing and even if he didn't agree with it, he thought it wasn't his place to meddle in her life. So, he just walked silently to where the Cobra Kai team was gathered.
Arriving there, they discovered that the fight between the Iron Dragons and Hirobukan in the quarterfinals had already ended. As expected, the Iron Dragons won without any difficulty. They finished the fight in less than three minutes and by a score of three to zero.
The next teams to fight would be Tiger Strike and Tempete de Viperes. Tory just didn't understand why Sensei Kreese and Sensei Kim called them all here. Hadn't they already been eliminated?
"Pay attention to this fight." - Sensei Kreese ordered and Tory made a confused face.
What's all this for?
Without really understanding what was happening, Tory just decided to obey.
The fight between Tiger Strike and Tempete de Viperes ended incredibly quickly, which was strange, since the two dojos seemed to be exactly the same level. It was no wonder that they were in fourth and fifth place in the leaderboard respectively. That's why it was strange when the Russian dojo took only four minutes to beat the French dojo three to zero. How did they get so good in just three days? Tory remembers perfectly well Cobra Kai kicking that dojo's ass during the qualifying phase. They were nowhere near as good as they were today. That was strange, to say the least.
"And with Tiger Strike's victory, our semifinalists for the day are..." - Gunther, the main organizer of Sekai Takai, was ready to announce the semifinalists when one of the other organizers ran up to him to whisper something in his ear. - "Unfortunately, we just received a complaint with legitimate evidence." - He informed and heard a commotion in the audience. - "Tiger Strike used performance-enhancing drugs and because of that, they are automatically disqualified from Sekai Takai." - Gunther decided, hearing the shouts of protest from the people who were supporting the Russian dojo.
"Is that true?" - Tory asked, looking at no one in particular.
"Yes." - Yoon was the first to answer. - "That's why the Senseis sent for you." - He said and Tory looked at him. - ''After our defeat, Min-Seok went to the men's locker room and ended up seeing what the Russians were doing.'' - Yoon clarified, looking at her. - ''Since he had never seen anything like this before, he decided to film it and when he showed it to Sensei Kim, she said it was cheating.'' - He explained and from Tiger Strike's performance today, she knew that this was no setup on Cobra Kai's part.
The Russians really did cheat.
''Calm down!'' - Gunther asked, but that didn't ease the crowd's screams. - ''The tournament has to go on.'' - He warned, looking at the people. - ''Since Tiger Strike had advanced to the semifinals and ended up being disqualified, we decided that the fairest thing would be to give the spot to the dojo that was in the best position in the table.'' - Gunther continued and Tory saw Sensei Kreese and Sensei Kim exchanging smiles of satisfaction with each other. - ''That means our fourth semifinalist is Cobra Kai!'' - He announced and the boos from the Russian team intensified even more.
Holy shit.
Cobra Kai was back in the competition.
Tory Nichols could still be a champion.
This chapter is really long, sorry!
I also wanted to say that I'm thequeencobr4 on Tik Tok, that's why a lot of what I wrote in this story are possible leaks. I kind of decided to turn the leaks I discovered into a fanfic, because if our sources lied to us (which I think is unlikely), we'll at least have a story here.
I also need to clarify here that not everything I write is a leak. For example, the scene with Robby and Tory in the hotel room probably won't happen, but we Keenry deserve some peace, right?
Anyway, if you have any questions about what is a possible leak or not, I can clarify in the comments. Please let me know what you think.
The next chapter is going to be killer (literally LOL)