─── ∙ ~εïз~ ∙ ───

"how's your parole going?" tory asked the girl. the next morning, she came to tabitha's work so they could have a proper conversation. it was now her break, so the two were outside eating a breakfast sandwich.

"it's okay." tabitha shrugged. "spend most of my time at work anyways. what about you?"

"it's been fine, pretty boring." tory told her. "working two jobs is as exhausting as i expected." tabitha reached over and placed her hand on hers, sympathetically. tory looked up from her plate and gave her a soft smile.

"you'll get through it. you're the strongest person i know." tabitha reassured her. "how's your mom getting on?"

"same as usual." tory shook her head sadly. "it's um... it's getting harder."

"shit, i forgot." tabitha hissed. "i bought you some groceries but i left them at home. you can come by to get it or i could drop it off?"

"no, tabby." tory frowned. "you didn't have to do that— i can't take it."

"i did it for you, tory. and brandon and your mom of course." tabitha spoke. "don't think of it as a pity or charity gift... think of it as a caring gift."

"thank you. i really appreciate it." tory smiled, her heart pounding a little faster at her kind gesture.

"don't even worry about it."

"how is uh, how is it going with your mom?" tory questioned.

tabby shrugged, peeling off the remaining bacon from her sandwich. "conversations are getting shorter. and she's been out for dinner a lot lately and leaving us takeaway money. either she's working overtime or she's seeing someone."

tory chuckled. "i hope they're better than her last boyfriends."

"yeah... i hope so too." tabby grinned. "hey, hawk and i are going to see miguel after my shift if you want to come with us."

tory paused for a second before shaking her head. "no, i'm good thanks."

"tabitha!" her manager's voice bellowed. "your break is over, get back in here!"

the girl groaned. she stood up and gathered up her and tory's empty plates. "you sure?"

"i'm sure, yeah."

"all right. i'll see you later." tabby nodded, striding back inside the restaurant. tory watched her leave, sighing and slumping back in her chair.

─── ∙ ~εïз~ ∙ ───

"el serpiente!" hawk announced, leaning against the doorframe of miguel's hospital room. he and tabitha had decided to stop by at the hospital but the girl needed to go to the toilet quickly, which gave the two boys time to catch up. hawk saw samantha larusso in the room, making his smile disappear.

"i'm gonna go." sam said, softly. miguel nodded, agreeing that it was the best thing to do. "okay, yeah."

hawk observed intently as the larusso strode over to the door. he rotated around as she exited, "you got some nerve coming here after what your boyfriend did to him, and after you kissed him."

"i don't care what you think." sam shook her head ."just wanna help."

hawk scoffed, "pretty sure you've done enough, princess." he seethed before strolling into the room. "hey, bro. what's up, man? you good? i like the spot. you holding up?"

tabitha quickly rubbed her still-damp hands on the front of her jeans, her gift for miguel tucked under her armpit. walking in the opposite direction, sam seemed to be in a rush to leave the hospital. she was walking so quickly that she unknowingly slammed her shoulder against tabitha's. "i'm so sorry." she quickly apologised, not realising who it was as she picked up the book that had dropped.

but tabitha noticed her immediately. she snatched the book out of sam's hands and groaned. "just can't get enough of him, can you?"

sam shook her head. "i just wanted to see how he's doing."

"or did you come to give him a kiss of good luck for his surgery on friday?" tabitha continued. a part of sam's floral shirt had raised from her crouching down. tabitha could see three scars on her arm and she immediately knew it was from tory's bracelet. she forced down the feeling of remorse that was crawling up and bit the bottom of her lip.

"does it even matter what i say?"

"no." tabitha shook her head. "you may have my family convinced that you're the good guy and i'm the evil person, but we both know that's not how it is."

"you attacked me. you're lucky i didn't want to press charges," sam said.

tabitha's fist clenched with outrage. "you should've pressed charges. would've kept you a lot safer, seeing as you... you know, kissed my boyfriend and we both know you're a reoffender of that."

"and i tried to apologise for that. but you and tory—" she stopped for a second. "it doesn't matter. the only thing that matters right now is miguel." she muttered.

"your boyfriend in juvie doesn't matter?"

"i didn't mean it like that." sam said quickly.

"you better choose your words carefully then." tabitha warned. "see i made the mistake of showing you mercy once, larusso. but i sure as hell won't make it again." she moved past the girl and made her way into the hospital room. "i come with gifts!" she exclaimed.

"took your sweet time." hawk spoke from the chair beside miguel's bed.

tabitha shrugged. "i hit a little bump in the road."

"i drove us here." hawk pointed out.

"it's a metaphor!" tabitha exclaimed. the boy snorted, "what do you know about metaphors?" he asked.

"guys." miguel interrupted before tabitha could make a comment. their constant bickering was not something he had missed.

"sorry." tabby smiled as she walked closer to him, "you're looking better."

"thanks tabs." miguel gave her a weak smile. "you look good." as tabitha grinned at the compliment, hawk rolled his eyes. "can you two get a room?"

"seeing as this is his room, it'd make more sense for you to get a room." tabitha stated, making miguel chuckle. "here, this will help you pass some time." she handed him 'to all the boys i've ever loved before' novel. miguel chuckled, gladly taking the book from her hold.

"this is so great. thanks tabby." miguel gave her a grateful smile.

"didn't take you for a romance type, man." hawk teased. miguel looked over at tabitha, his smile growing wider at the mere sight of her. "yeah... neither did i."

"so, what should we watch?" tabitha questioned. she reached over to the remote that was on the bedside table and beside it was a card. "ooo, who's this from?" she questioned, picking it up.

miguel looked over to her, but it was too late to stop her. he uncomfortably watched as she turned it around and her face fell. tabby didn't even have to read it to understand the reference, all she saw was the octopus and she knew what was going on.

"what is it?" hawk questioned.

"a thoughtful card from samantha." tabitha said through gritted teeth. "with what they like to call their 'relationship mascot' on the front. she says miguel is octopus in her thoughts."

hawk gave her a weird look. "that makes no sense."

"that's not what it says—" miguel started. tabitha looked angrily down at her boyfriend, cutting him off. "why does she think it's appropriate to give this to you?"

"tabby." miguel sighed. "i don't know... she's just—she's just checking up on me. that's all."

"that's all? really?" tabitha scoffed. "because—because it seems to me she's trying to get back together with you!"

"what?" miguel asked with bafflement. hawk just looked out of the window, wanting to be anywhere but there at that moment.

"is that so hard to believe, miguel? i mean, first she kisses you. then she gives you this, tryna to make you think of your past relationship—" she threw the card onto his lap. "now she says you're all that matters. i mean, really?"

miguel was confused with the last part. "she said that?" he asked, softly.

"wow." tabitha scoffed at his gentle tone. "good luck with your surgery, i hope it goes well. i'll see you later, hawk." she pivoted on her feet and made her way to the door. before she left, she raised her foot and booted the trash can out of the room.

"tabby, please. it's not like that at all, i promise." miguel called out to her, but she was already out of eyesight. "tabitha? tabitha!"

─── ∙ ~εïз~ ∙ ───

theodore silver stepped out of his vehicle and into the car park. the first person he saw was sam, who was standing by the car beside him, collecting payment. "hey, sam!" he called out, shutting the car door behind him.

the brunette turned around to look at him and he smiled. she was wearing blue denim overalls with her some of hair pulled up. "hey, i'm glad you made it. and you brought your car."

he nodded, pulling out a twenty dollar bill. "here." sam took the money before she trekked back to grab a bucket. she placed it beside his feet, "you wanna do this one together?" sam offered.

"if i'm helping, you've gotta give me half back." theo joked. sam shook her head as she chuckled. "no way."

"i'm kidding. this was a really good idea." theo complimented, reaching into the bucket and drawing out a sponge. "by the way, some of the guys that i'm training with for a spot on the varsity team said they'd show."

"really?" sam questioned with excitement, grabbing her own sponge. "theo, that's great. thank you."

"of course." theo nodded. "it was no problem. plus i see moon's got the cheerleaders with her."

"yeah, they're great." sam grinned. "they're sex-positive feminists."

"nice." theo hummed. "so, how have you been?"

"it hasn't been easy." sam explained, scrubbing the front window of his car. "i've been... having trouble sleeping and it's been even harder at school. i just keep thinking that tory'll show up." she shook her head, not wanting to get emotional in front of her friend. "um... i saw miguel today."

"how's he doing?"

"he's better. i'm just glad he's awake." sam said. "but i did something really stupid. i thought it was a nice gift but now i kinda regret it."

theo frowned, his first thought was that she would've kissed him. "what did you do?"

"i gave him a card... with an octopus on it." sam admitted.

the boy didn't understand the big deal about that. "that's sweet, right?"

"i thought it was! which is why i got it." sam started. "but octopi were kind of our... thing when we were together."

"right." theo cringed.

"and tabitha was going in after i left, and i'm scared that if she finds it and knows what it means then—"

"she'll kill you?" theo questioned.

sam nodded. "i'm scared she'll kill me."

"tabitha isn't going to hurt you." theo reassured her. "i know it probably sounds stupid for me to say that but... i know she won't."

"she has hurt me."

"but she could've done worse and she didn't. she held back, didn't she?" theo reminded her. "i am in no way trying to invalidate your feelings and fears. but you two were each other's best friends and she knows that."

"it was ten years ago." sam said.

"and since then, she's never had a friend like you." theo explained. "what even happened between you two?"

"nothing." sam shrugged. "you guys moved away, that's all."

"really? because when we were in the car to our new place, the only thing i remember is her saying how much she hated you." theo said.

sam looked ashamed, she wanted to move on from this conversation and the best way to do that was evident. so she flicked her sponge at him, the water and soap from it hitting his white vest. theo gasped, dramatically. he didn't hesitate to plunge his sponge into the bucket and do the same to her.

"hey!" she exclaimed.

"you started it!" he yelled back, throwing soapy water at her again. the pair continued to do this, dip the water into the bucket and hurl the liquid at each other.

as they loudly laughed, one of the reporters and her camera crew walked over. "samantha larusso, could we talk to you?" she asked. sam gasped softly, wiping the soap off of her face and clothes. "uh, yeah sure. theo, could you give us a second?"

theo cleared his throat, placing the sponge in a now practically empty bucket. "of course, no problem. i'll see you later?"

"see you later." sam nodded, a wide smile on her face.

⎯ ❃ jania speaks!
as much as she won't admit it, tabitha WILL show sam mercy again ahahaha she cares for her too much deep down

also, is it even a cobra kai book by me if my ocs and their love interest don't have a water fight? gioia and eli in chapter 28 i'm looking at you... noelle and robby in season 5 at the water park, you're next!

and finally, if this book was a different wallows song it would definitely be 'hard to believe'