In his apartment, Snake watches Ponytail hanging out with Terry with vague jealousy. It had been his idea to give his permit to Betsy, but even so, if this goes well, he won't get to visit the living world and talk to Terry again. But he doesn't want this to go badly, else he and Terry and Ponytail are just gonna be sitting around not knowing what to do. What he wouldn't give for more time alive. The next best thing he can do is give that gift to Terry.
When Ponytail cuts Terry off mid-sentence with, "Oh no, this isn't good," then promptly disappears, it doesn't take a genius to figure out something has gone terribly wrong with the plan.
Snake zooms over to the Ghost Council to find out what's going on. First he asks a few random official looking ghosts he comes across, but they have no idea why his friend might have been sucked back to the afterlife. He goes to visit the Living World Registrar, who has a sign on her desk saying gone to court, back later.
Now he has even more of a bad feeling. He hurries over to the ghost court house, to find both Betsy and Ponytail standing trial in chains.
"Elizabeth Klein, you stand accused of entering the living world without authorisation, using a stolen permit."
"She didn't steal it, I gave her mine," Snake says.
Ponytail slaps his forehead.
"Aw, nuts," Snake says as he feels himself dragged by an invisible force to the front of the courtroom. Chains appear around his wrists. He looks down at his feet and finds he has a metal ball attached to one of his ankles with another chain. He chuckles. "Ball and chain, classic," he says.
"You could've got away with it if you hadn't said anything," Ponytail hisses to him.
"And leave you guys to take the fall? Nah."
"Do you think we did enough to change the future?" Betsy whispers.
"I sure hope so," Ponytail says.
"So what do we do now, mentor?" Snake asks.
Ponytail looks stumped. He shrugs. "The only thing we can do," he says, "is tell the truth and hope for the best."
The Ghost Judge bangs his ghost gavel, and says, "Quiet in my court!"
Terry paces the room, not sure what to do now that Ponytail disappeared. This has never happened before, he and Snake always left quite normally, as normally as ghosts can do anyway. He feels helpless. Is Ponytail in trouble? Ponytail has done so much for him, but there is nothing Terry can do to help him. He's dead anyway. And Terry has himself convinced that soon he will be too if things don't change.
There's a knock at the door, and Terry is filled with anticipation as he recognises John's knock. He hurries to the door and opens it.
"Johnny!" Terry says, and resists the urge to add something like finally come around? If John is finally giving him a chance, he doesn't want to risk it. Not this time, when so much is at stake.
John looks strange, like he's tense but trying to appear casual, and is trying to mask the smile on his face. "Well well well, aren't you a dark horse?"
A faint sense of hope bubbles up inside Terry. "Am I?" he says, stepping aside to let John enter the room.
"So, you weren't kidding about ghosts being real," John says, and when he turns around Terry sees that his eyes are red. Terry can only think of a couple of times he's even noticed John holding back tears. The visit from Betsy must've really got to him.
"I can't believe you ever doubted me," Terry says.
"Can you blame me?"
"I suppose not," Terry says, and notices John fiddling with something in his pocket. "So you understand it all now?"
"I'm not sure I understand any of it," John says. He pulls the eunjangdo from his pocket.
Terry's heart speeds up as John turns the blade over in his hands. Perhaps he was wrong to feel hopeful about John being here. Maybe this is it. Maybe his time is up. Would it be more poetic for him to put up a fight? Or to willingly submit to death by the hand of the man he has both loved and hated more than anyone else?
"Terry?"
"Huh?" Terry blinks, and sees John holding out the sheathed eunjangdo to him.
"I thought you might be interested in seeing Master Kim's eunjangdo."
"Oh," Terry says, trying to slow down his breathing. So that's what this is? A peace offering? "Yes. I would. Thank you." He takes the knife from John and unsheathes it, turning it this way and that. "Incredible. And still in perfect condition despite its age."
"A bit like us in that respect," John says with a chuckle.
Terry smiles and runs his thumb along the blade. "You've kept it very sharp," he says in approval.
"You can never know when you will need a thing like this."
"There is a time for war, but we must not forget that there is also a time for peace," Terry says, sheathing the eunjangdo and pressing it back into John's hands. "As I am sure Betsy impressed upon you."
"You know about Betsy? That she came to see me?" John says, outraged like he considers this a violation of his privacy.
Terry nods, and starts to understand John's struggle with this conversation as he finds himself hesitating to speak his dead friends' names. "Ponytail told me. It was Snake's idea to-"
"Wait, Ponytail? Our buddy from 'Nam Ponytail?"
"Yes. I told you two ghosts came to visit me. He was one of them."
"Okay," John says, the information sinking in. "This must be really serious."
"Yes. I think it is. More serious than the Sekai Taikai, and this is what I have always dreamed of," Terry says. "It's a great shame that I haven't been able to enjoy it even a fraction of the amount I hoped to. I let my resentment towards you and the Miyagi-Dos cloud my mind." He waves his arms. "Imagine, reaching the peak I have aimed for all my life, focusing purely on revenge and hating every second of it, and then dying. Probably taking a lot of other people with me, by the sound of it. What a waste."
John just stands there, listening quietly. Terry isn't sure what he's thinking, but this is the most cordial they have been in a long time.
"We're lucky that we have people in the afterlife who care about us," Terry says.
John coughs, and Terry suspects he is trying to hold back some swallows, and looks past Terry as he speaks. "Betsy disappeared without saying goodbye. I waited for her to return. But she didn't."
"Ponytail d-disappeared too, just now," Terry says, tripping over his words. It's hard to speak to him or about him without seeing him being shot in the head. He takes a breath and plows on. "It was odd. Betsy wasn't supposed to come here, Ponytail told me it was against the rules. They might be in trouble."
"Nonsense. Betsy has never broken a rule in her life."
"Perhaps death has changed her."
It's just an idle suggestion, but John clenches his fists.
"I'm kidding," Terry says. "I'm sure she did what she did because she cares about you." He smiles. "You two were absolutely taken with each other. I couldn't help but be jealous."
John flinches and takes a step back.
"Sorry," Terry says, but he's not quite sure what he's apologising for. They might be back on speaking terms, but things are still quite precarious between them.
"So, what you said. About letting bygones be bygones."
"Yes," Terry says, barely believing this is real. "I think we should."
John gives him an awkward smile, and holds his arms out to Terry.
Terry hesitates. It's been so long. He wants desperately to hug John again but he's afraid that if he does all the emotions he has held back for so long will come pouring out. To hell with it, he thinks, and throws his arms around John, pulling him in tight. John grips him with equal strength, and Terry hears his breath come out in ragged gasps. He's stressed, or nervous.
Terry's heart is beating so fast he's sure John must notice. He's missed this. It was something he took for granted back in the old days, casually slinging an arm around each other's shoulders, pulling each other into a hug whenever they were separated for even a short amount of time. Terry didn't ever want things to change, but one day they hugged for what could so easily have been the last time.
It feels so nice to have John back in his arms, he never wants to let go. He's not even sure how long they've been here holding each other, but John isn't pulling away. Maybe he's been wanting this as much as Terry has. At any point in the last year, John could have hugged him and it would have instantly fixed everything between them. Terry didn't dare initiate a hug, being pushed away would have destroyed him.
Eventually Terry loosens his grip and John does too. They let go of each other, and Terry waits for John to speak, not trusting himself to say anything right now.
"I hope she's okay," John says. "Betsy."
Terry clenches his teeth to try to keep his expression neutral. He mustn't let himself believe that John was thinking about someone else the whole time they were holding each other. He can't let himself give into anger and jealousy again. "She's dead, John," he says haltingly. "She did what she did because she would do anything for you. As would I."
John opens his mouth to speak, then closes it again. He looks at Terry for some time, blinking at him. "You'll have to forgive me, but this complete one-eighty from you is really throwing me through a loop," he says. John sounds like he is choosing his words carefully too.
"I'm sorry Johnny, I thought it was the only way. To destroy you. I couldn't live with myself the way things were! You didn't take me seriously. Hell, I didn't know if you even liked me any more."
"That's ridiculous. Do you think I'd call you if I didn't? Invite you to teach at my dojo?"
My dojo. No, Terry needs to let it go. Even though he's a seasoned veteran at negotiation and compromise, attempting to do so with John is so hard. Everything John says to him brings up extreme emotions. He gives John a tight smile.
"So, is this enough? To avert this disaster?" John asks. "Or do we need to make this official?" He holds out a hand to Terry.
Terry clasps John's hand, and the way John smiles at him makes the breath catch in his throat. He can barely believe this is happening. Can things really go back to the way that they were? And he can't help it, tears are welling up in his eyes at the way John smiles at him. He blinks, willing them not to fall. He doesn't want John to think he is the same weak crybaby he was when they first met.
But John is still clasping his hand. He claps Terry on the shoulder with his other hand and then squeezes the back of his neck. Terry feels blood rush to his face. He's always interpreted that gesture as John wordlessly telling him that he loves him, that's what he's always wanted it to mean.
"I think we need to make sure," Terry breathes, and leans in and presses his lips against John's. To his surprise, John doesn't pull away and punch him as he feared he might, but kisses him back. And this is it. Finally. This is why he could never fill that void inside him no matter how he tried. This is everything he's ever wanted.
Their arms are around each other, pulling each other closer. John stumbles backward into the wall, and Terry leans against him, deepening their kiss. John pulls Terry's hair down and tangles his fingers in it, pulling him in. Terry is surprised and delighted at how into this John is. Is this all they needed, for one of them to finally make a move?
The intensity of his feelings scares him, and he pulls away, propping himself up on the wall.
John blinks, looking utterly bewildered. "So it's true."
"What is?" Terry asks. His brain has completely stopped working.
"That you've got it bad for me."
"How did she know?"
"I dunno. I guess she was watching down on us. Women are better at noticing these things."
"Did she also tell you that you've got it bad for me?"
"Funny. She didn't mention that part," John says. "Why, who says that I do?"
Terry laughs. "Just a hunch."
John smiles and pats Terry on the cheek.
"Isn't this better than fighting?" Terry says.
John makes a noncommittal noise, but Terry will take it. He leans in to kiss John again, thrilled that this is something he can do now. Then Terry pushes himself away from John and shakes his hair out.
"So what now?" John says.
"I have some ideas," Terry says with a smirk. "But first I think we need to get out of here."
"What do you mean get out of here? But we haven't even got to the final elimination round!"
"Yes, but according to Ponytail, the disaster will happen here. So, we need to remove ourselves to prevent anything untoward happening."
"I thought the important part was that we are friends again," John says, making air-quotes around the word friends.
Terry smiles. Yes, friends, and more. No, he can't let himself get distracted. "I don't want to take the risk. I've seen enough people die, Johnny."
"And so have I. But your team-"
"I never could get invested in The Iron Dragons. As skilled as they are, they are not my team, they are not Cobra Kai."
"Then switch sides. After all I've been through, I'd like to be here when my team wins."
"We can watch them on a huge television in the most exclusive resort in whichever country you would like." Terry takes John's hands. "Life is short, let's not risk making it shorter for ourselves or anyone else. And on that note, since life is short, I want you to marry me."
John stares at him. For a moment Terry thinks John might mock him for his impulsivity, but then he says, "Can I think about it?"
"Of course," Terry says, and looks upwards, wondering if the ghosts are watching them. If they are, he thinks they'd be as happy with this turn of events as he is.