─── ∙ ~εïз~ ∙ ───

the next day, the brooks family was invited to have dinner with the larussos. tabitha wasn't yet aware that they had also invited johnny lawrence and the diaz family. when daniel opened the door, esther enveloped him in a friendly, greeting hug.

"hey guys." daniel waved at them. tabitha kept her head down, her eyes on the ground. she was surprised that the family even wanted her in the house after what happened december 19th. "diego couldn't make it?" he asked.

esther shook her head. "no, he had to look after his son." she explained, making daniel nod with acknowledgement. "come in, come in. everyone's already inside." he ushered them inside the house. while her brother and mother entered the house without hesitation, tabitha paused at the threshold. the larusso family did not press charges for the attack, and so her ban from their home was lifted.

daniel put his hand out for her, giving her a reassuring nod. tabitha looked up at him, shock on her face. it still baffled her that their family was so forgiving. she took his hand and allowed him to lead her into the house.

the first person who saw the girl was anthony. tabitha felt almost embarrassed to see him but the boy stepped over and pulled her into an embrace. she let out a sigh of relief, wrapping her arms around him. "i see you've had a freaking growth spurt." she chuckled.

"yeah." he nodded. "now we're just waiting for yours." he remarked. tabitha scoffed, pushing the boy away from her. "i see your attitude grew as well."

anthony shrugged. "i learnt from the best." tabitha smiled at his words. "yes... yes you did." she nodded in agreement.

"hey, kids! dinner!" amanda exclaimed. tabitha rushed over to her mother, striving to be beside her to make the dinner less awkward. "hey, tabby. it's good to see you." amanda greeted the girl, watching as she sat beside her mother.

"you too, mrs larusso." tabitha spoke, causing the woman to frown at her formalities. miguel took the seat beside her, making her heart skip a beat. it seemed like the diaz's were here too, could her night get any more awkward?

"hey." miguel greeted her nervously, uncertain of how she felt about him. tabitha didn't even look up at him, she didn't know what to say. on one hand, she had broken up with him. but on the other hand, she absolutely regretted it. "yo." she muttered.

on the opposite side of the table were anthony, theo, sam and carmen. the diaz woman gave tabitha a warm smile. "hi tabitha. how have you been?" she questioned.

"i've been well, thank you." tabitha replied, her eyes fixated on the table.

carmen's attention shifted to daniel and johnny. "i don't think i'll ever get sick of seeing the two of you together." amanda chuckled with agreement. "the last time these two were in a kitchen together... i'm glad the steak knives weren't out."

"i'll drink to that." johnny said, raising his beer bottle. amanda nodded, clinking her wine glass with his bottle. "same."

"so how's business?" carmen questioned.

"uh, the dealership's been the best it's been in years." daniel smiled. "it should practically be on autopilot by the time sam takes over. right, sam?"

sam gave him a look. "dad..."

miguel glanced up at the girl sitting opposite him. "you're gonna take over the dealership? that's awesome." he exclaimed.

"well—"

"nah, it's just an inside joke." daniel quickly clarified. "see when sam was little, she used to walk around like she owned the place." esther chuckled at the memory. "every time we can to visit. she and tabby were like your assistants."

tabitha glanced up to see sam gazing right at her, so she quickly looked away. "they were so adorable! but can you blame sam?" amanda spoke up. "she was practically raised on that showroom floor... almost born on it too." she muttered, making carmen laugh.

"hey, whatever sam wants to do with her life, that's entirely up to her." daniel stated. "if she decides to go to school nearby, get her mba. usc, ucla, i'm just saying... it's all icing on the cake."

"so, miguel, how's school going?" esther asked the boy. his head snapped over to look at the woman, slightly surprised by her question. "uh, good." the boy nodded. "uh, great actually." he corrected himself.

"straight a's this semester." carmen told her with a proud smile. "that's incredible." esther gushed, nudging tabitha with her shoulder. the girl remained silent, reaching over for the salad bowl and dumping half of the contents onto her plate. she picked up a few slices of the pizza and positioned it right on top.

"yes, a total nerd." johnny remarked. esther laughed at his words. "you'd know nothing about that, lawrence. didn't i have to tutor you?" she challenged.

johnny rolled his eyes, sipping on his beer bottle. "you stop that." he warned her, placing it back down on the table while esther raised her hands in defence.

"see, with grades like that you can go anywhere you want." daniel said. miguel nodded with an understanding look on his face. "yeah. i'd, uh, like to go to stanford." he spoke, nervously.

"that's a pretty impressive school." daniel said with shock. miguel smiled, clearly having his heart set on the school for a while. "yeah, i think it's like number six in the country. the campus is beautiful."

"it's definitely a top choice." carmen chimed in. "but that tuition, wow. we're also thinking about santa monica college, right miguel? save some money, live at home, then see where we go from there."

"scm's great too." daniel commented, trying to keep the mood light. "it's right by the beach. have you checked out their campus?"

"no, actually, i-i-i haven't." miguel shook his head, growing stressed out.

"well tabitha could take you there!" esther suggested, making the girl's eyes grow wide. "we lived there for a while and i'm sure she remembers some nice places. right, tabby?"

"mhm." she muttered. the girl reached over for the spoon in the salad bowl just as miguel did. when the two's fingers touched, their hands quickly jerked away. in the process, miguel managed to knock over daniel's glass and spill his red wine all over the table.

"oh, oh! mr larusso, shit!" the boy exclaimed, standing to his feet as daniel patted down his damp shirt. "ah, i mean i'm sorry!" he tried to correct himself.

"no, don't worry about it. please." daniel reassured him. "just a little wine. right?" miguel sighed, sitting back in his chair. the tension of the whole dinner was making tabitha anxious. she not-so-discreetly reached over to her mom's glass of champagne to take a sip. but esther noticed immediately and quickly smacked her hand away.

amanda's eyes scanned everyone, trying to find something to say and change the conversation. she cleared her throat. "theo, my love. how's school been for you?"

"it's been good!" theo smiled. "i got a place on varsity." amanda nodded at his declaration, "your mom told us about that, congratulations! i'm so proud of you."

"thank you." he chuckled. "uh, i've started tutoring calculus to someone in our grade." sam glanced up at him, remembering when he mentioned it to her. "oh, yeah. how's that going?" the girl asked.

"it was pretty tough at first but i think she's getting the hang of things now." theo announced. sam raised her eyebrow with bafflement, "she?" the girl muttered.

"and i thought miguel was a nerd." johnny shook his head. "you've been hiding in the shadows this whole time." he remarked, making theo grin.

"have you been thinking about college too?" daniel asked the boy. "yeah." theo said. "i've still got a couple options but so far i've narrowed it down to princeton—"

"wow! that's incredible."

"but if i decide i'd rather stay closer to home i've got my eye on caltech." theo explained. daniel gave a nod of approval. "all amazing choices."

"don't forget about the schools with football scholarships, baby." esther spoke up. "like usc?"

"oh yeah." theo nodded, "of course, i do hope to get one."

"i'm sure you will." amanda reassured him. her eyes moved to the left side of the table, now looking at tabitha. "now that is a beautiful necklace." she spoke to the girl who hadn't spoken a word. "was it one of your birthday presents?" she asked.

tabitha almost choked on the olive in her mouth. carmen smiled to herself, having been there when miguel purchased the jewellery. she cleared her throat, her fingers grazing across the necklace. "uh, yeah. it was."

"am i alright to ask who gave it to you?" amanda questioned. "i don't want to pry." tabitha shook her head at her words, "no. um... it was-it was miguel."

"miguel." esther echoed her words, a growing smile on her face. amanda seemed to share the same amused expression. "well, miguel, it's a beautiful pick."

"i guess that means it's fitting." miguel said without thinking. the four women began to gush and awed at his words, and for the first time that day, tabitha looked miguel in the eye. she gave him what seemed to be a shy, appreciative smile before looking away.

"miyagi-do's already turned you soft?" johnny challenged. esther scoffed at his words, "oh please. he's far sweeter than you were. what did you get me for my seventeeth?"

"a valuable, signed karate t-shirt." johnny spoke in his defence. "oh yeah?" esther asked, rasing her eyebrow. "you mean a cobra kai t-shirt signed by psycho kreese."

"so we agree that he's psychotic?" amanda quickly spoke up. esther immediately nodded, "you should've seen him all those years ago." she sighed.

"so!" daniel spoke up, attempting to change the conversation. "how was the party last night?" he questioned. both tabitha and miguel's cheeks heated up at the mention of last night. "oh! and how did you like the bonsai plant?"

theodore smiled. "it was really fun and the plant is so great. thank you, daniel."

"it fits perfectly with his whole room." sam added with a smile. daniel clapped his hands with excitement. "that's exactly what i want to hear. i'm so glad."

the party soon came to an end and after giving anthony a hug goodbye, tabitha quickly grabbed her jacket and made her way to the door. but it was being blocked by daniel and johnny, forcing her to stay longer.

"so still okay with me taking the eagle fangs tomorrow?" daniel questioned his co-sensei. dinner was now over and everyone was preparing to leave the household. johnny nodded. "yeah. i had some ideas on how to get your kids' offense up to snuff." tabby raised an eyebrow at their words, so they had truly joined forces?

"so, you enjoy the food?" sam asked the girl, walking over to her. tabitha was slightly surprised at her attempt at conversation. "uh, yeah. salad was nice." tabitha nodded.

theo chuckled, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "first time i've ever seen you enjoy a salad." he joked. sam grinned at his words. "yeah, my mom seems to always know what to put in them." she said.

tabitha's eyes moved down to the ground when she saw miguel approaching them. johnny pointed at the boy, "make sure defense doesn't turn you into a cream puff."

"don't listen to him, miguel." theo spoke. "cream puffs taste amazing."

daniel shook his head as he chuckled. "tomorrow is gonna be great. as long as sensei over here brings everyone back in one piece."

"no promises."

"hey, you better make a promise." daniel half-joke.

"okay, down boys." carmen ordered, putting a stop to their conversation.

"goodbye, larussos." johnny said, pointing at the family as carmen and miguel waved goodbye to them.

"thank you." "take care, bye."

esther wished johnny and the diaz family farewell before pulling amanda and daniel into a hug.

─── ∙ ~εïз~ ∙ ───

"where is he taking us?" nate questioned, panting as he and his teammates raced up the stairs after johnny.

the next day, johnny had told the all to met them at some run down, abandoned building. he was yet to tell them what the plan was as he immediately rushed through the doors when they all arrived.

they all paused for a second, using his question as an opportunity to take a breather. "nowhere good." demetri breathed out. "i heard he drowned a kid in a pool trying to teach him how to kick, and that was before he sicced a rabid dog on eli. this does not bode well."

"i'm sure it won't be that bad." theo spoke from behind demetri and sam. he seemed to be the only one not exhausted. demetri gave him a look. "you not even being the slightest bit tired makes me angry." he said. "maybe i should join varsity football."

theo cringed. "maybe not."

"let's go, miyagis!" johnny exclaimed from ahead. "move your asses!" demetri sighed and managed to power through the multiple flights of stairs. when they finally reached the roof, johnny kicked the door open and lead them right to the edge.

the students glanced over, and seeing how high they were made theo wince. demetri cringed, stepping away from the ledge. "God. i'm tired of being right." he muttered.

"is this a bad time to say i have a minor fear of heights?" theo questioned. johnny nodded. "yes, it's a terrible time." he said.

"what are we doing here?" sam questioned. johnny grinned. "when an eagle's hungry, it doesn't hesitate. it'll dive down at a hundred an hour to snatch its prey. doesn't wait around for a fish to jump in its feet."

"talons." demetri corrected him. johnny glared at him. "it's not talent. it's instinct." demetri and theo quickly shared a glance of disbelief at the man's mistake. "an eagle knows it has to make the first move. if you want to beat cobra kai in the all valley, you gotta break yourself of this wait-and-see crap."

"and how exactly are we gonna do that?" sam asked him.

"you're gonna jump from this roof..." johnny turned around to gesture to the opposite building. "to that one."

theo's face fell. "are you serious?" "what?" sam asked at the same time. "are you crazy?"

"that building is, like, five nates away and we're at least fourteen nates high." demetri estimated. nate gave him a look of disbelief. "please don't use me as a system of measurement." he warned.

"quiet!" johnny yelled. "if you wanna be an eagle, first you gotta learn how to fly. and you can't do that unless you jump."

"what if we fall?" abe questioned, fear evident in his voice.

"that's what the mattresses are for." johnny explained.

"and—and if we miss the mattresses?" demetri stuttered. johnny shrugged. "try not to."

"does my mom know about this lesson?" theo questioned their temporary sensei. johnny paused. "no... so uh, please don't tell her. and since when were you a mama's boy?"

theo looked down at the ground and scoffed. "i am not. i just don't want to break any bones during football season—"

"all right, who's first?" johnny questioned. they all glanced at one another, not wanting to be the first person to do the extreme task. "we're not leaving 'til someone jumps." johnny told them. "let's go. i'll wait."

"then i guess you'll be waiting a long time. 'cause we're not jumping." sam seethed before turning to the boy beside her. "theo, come on." he gave johnny one last look before following sam to sit on one of the wooden planks.

∙ ~εïз~ ∙

the students had been sitting, waiting to be told they could go home while johnny waited for one of them to volunteer. growing frustrated, johnny made his way over to theo and sam. "what's the problem, larusso? don't tell me you're scared of heights like brooks over here."

"i said it was a minor fear." theo quickly spoke up. johnny dismissed him, "minor, major, i don't care. still makes you a pussy."

"i'm not scared." sam quickly said.

"then what is it? worried you're gonna muss up your hair?" johnny challenged. sam shook her head. "my dad wouldn't want us doing this." she stated.

johnny scoffed. "oh, gimme a break. you do everything your mommy and daddy tell you to? if they told you to jump off a bridge, would you?"

"you're telling me to jump off a building." sam reminded him.

"yeah, onto another building." johnny corrected the girl. theo shook his head. "see, that actually doesn't make it less scary." he explained:

johnny sighed. "look, all i'm trying to do is help you doormats survive the all valley."

"it we do your training, i don't think we'll survive the afternoon." sam shot back. "look, we came here with an open mind, but this is dangerous."

"yeah, well know what i'm doing."

"do you?" sam challenged. "based on your track record, you don't have the best judgment."

"oh, you wanna talk judgment? how about smashing into my firebird and driving off with your girlfriends?" johnny asked. theo's eyes widened, glancing over to the brunette.

seeing the shocked look on theo's face made her slightly panic. "i—i wasn't even driving." she reassured him.

"what about showing up at my place drunk, causing your dad to kick down my door?" johnny continued. "guessing that wasn't your fault either."

johnny had cleary struck a nerve as sam jumped up to her feet. "i'm a teenager who's made mistakes. you're a fifty-something-year-old man who lives alone, drinks all day, and clearly hasn't figured out his own life."

"sam—" theo tried to speak up, taken aback by her outburst of irritation.

"i figured out one thing for sure. if i did everything my parents wanted me to do, i'd be wearing a suit and tie in some
worthless job while i wait out the clock." johnny told her. "i didn't want that. and now i get to do what i love every damn day. i get to try to help kids like you find their own way. if you wanna sit in the back seat your whole life, go right ahead. it's no sweat off my back."

johnny walked away from them, leaving the two alone in the tense environment. "you okay?" theo questioned. sam nodded, sighing.

"so no one wants to fly?" johnny shouted, catching everyone's attention. "you all just want to stay in the nest. pathetic!" he yelled. sam's phone chimed, making her pull it from her pocket to read the text. "fine, you win. you can bore cobra kai into submission."

"my dad says not to do anything he wouldn't." sam spoke softly, glancing up at the boy. "is that what you want to do?" theo questioned. but sam didn't reply, she was now deep in thought.

"you all failed. grab your crap and let's go." johnny ordered. sam snapped back in to reality, grabbing her backpack and getting to her feet. the man walked over to them, "looks like you got what you wanted." he muttered to her.

sam stopped in her tracks. she shrugged her backpack off her shoulder and took a few steps back. a supportive grin grew on theo's face as the girl prepared herself to sprint. once she started running, he cheered. "you go sam!"

she jumped over the ledge and once her feet were off of the ground, theo's heart pounded a little faster. he had no doubt that she could do it, but seeing it done made him a little worried.

but the girl landed on the other guiding, rolling onto the ground before getting to her feet. "nice move, larusso!" johnny shouted as the rest of her team applauded her success.

"awesome!"

sam's gaze landed on theo, who had a wide smile on his face as he clapped for the girl. she couldn't help but blush at his support, a giggle escaping her lips.

⎯ ❃ jania speaks!

daniel anthony theo sam carmen amanda
miguel tabby esther johnny
(daniel and amanda on the ends on the table)

22 chapters later and we're back at dinner with the larussos. notice how calm and collected tabitha is compared to chapter 10

alt title: angel in an old dress