chapter eighteen, if you love him, let him go

tw: mention of blood/getting cut (not sh!!!)
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          It had been a day or two, life seemed to pass Izzy by each day where she wasn't overworking herself with karate and trying to impress her Sensei. She still has yet to confront Silver and Izzy doesn't know if she will. Izzy assumes that not seeing him was for the better, he seemed to have moved on to making Tory the new face of Cobra Kai. Especially now that Izzy and Robby left.

But Izzy knew Tory didn't want to be there. They talk about it, when Izzy stays up talking to Miguel over the phone, she's texting Tory and trying to be there for her while she suffers the wrath of Cobra Kai.

The Vera girl was outside in her apartment complex at the mailboxes, going through the mail that was stuffed in a metal box for their apartment. She shuffled through the mail until her eyes came across something that made Izzy's breath hitch.

         It was a card shaped into the Cobra Kai snake and when Izzy flipped it over, it seemed like it was some sort of recruitment card. She wasn't sure if everyone in the complex got one or just her, but either way, it felt personal, like Silver or someone from Cobra Kai must've stuck it into her mailbox personally.

         "Izzy."

         The sudden voice made Izzy jump, snapping the girl out of her thoughts and turning to see Robby standing a few feet away from her. An uneasy laugh left Izzy's lips, "Holy shit. You scared me." Izzy muttered, quickly stuffing the Cobra Kai card away in between the envelopes of mail.

Robby caught a quick glimpse of the Cobra Kai snake, but he didn't say anything. Izzy quickly spoke up, "What are you doing here?" She asked the boy, locking the mailbox shut.

         "Uh, I know you're not in Cobra Kai anymore, but I know how much karate means to you. It helped you through a dark time, it's how you met Miguel–" Robby smiled as Izzy let out a laugh, "And I think Miyagi-Do would really help you. It helped me before."  Robby then told her.

         Izzy furrowed her eyebrows. "Wait– Miyagi-Do? Didn't Mr. LaRusso shut it down?" She asked, confusion written all over her face.

         "He's opening it back up. That's why I'm here. We're all going to be at Miyagi-Do to start training again." Robby explained, "We all want you to be there. Miguel, Eli, me, even my dad." Robby laughed, seeing a smile appear on Izzy's lips.

          A weary sigh then came from Izzy's lips. "I don't know, Robby–"

          The Keene boy cut her off. "It's fine. You don't have to decide right now, but we're all heading to Miyagi-Do in an hour. If you decide you want to go, you know where the dojo is." Robby said to her, a reassuring smile on his face.

          Izzy nodded. She couldn't decide right now even if she was forced to. "Thanks, Robby. Uh, if I go.. I'll see you later." She spoke, holding the stack of mail in her hands.

          Robby smiled at her, "I'm sure I'll see you later even if you don't come." He told her, turning to walk away and out of the apartment complex.

          A deep sigh left the girl's lips as she watched Robby leave and Izzy was left standing there, unsure of what she should do. She made her way back to her apartment where Kayla was sitting in the living room, minding her own business as her focus was on perfecting a blunt she was rolling.

          Izzy set the mail on the dining table, but took out the Cobra Kai flyer and sneaking away off to her bedroom. She closed her bedroom door and sat on the edge of her bed, looking down at what was in her hands.

It should be an easy decision, but Izzy found herself struggling with what would be the right choice for her. Both ways could take her down an entirely different path.

          As much as she wanted to hate Cobra Kai, it was the dojo that got her into karate. But then Izzy starts to think about everything the dojo put her through, and the fact she felt like she didn't actually deserve the trophy at the All Valley, and how she chose a boy over her future in karate. Except she was given another chance, but at a different dojo—one of her rival dojos.

          With another shaky breath leaving her lips, Izzy pondered on the decision for at least another thirty minutes. She paced back and forth in her room, not letting go of the Cobra Kai card. Cobra Kai or Miyagi-Do. Izzy eventually came to her decision, realizing what was going to be best for her in the long run.

So with that, Izzy tore the Cobra Kai card in half and then into tiny bits until it wasn't recognizable, throwing it away in the trashcan in her room.

Izzy hurried out of her room, grabbing her car keys on the way through the living room. She said bye to Kayla since she would more than likely be at work by the time Izzy got back home tonight. Izzy was freaking out, because she was going to be late after spending so long on a decision that should've been easy. She was scared she would be too late, or that she'd get there and wouldn't be welcomed, just like how it would be at Cobra Kai with Silver.

          The drive to Miyagi-Do was quick, mostly because Izzy sped through the roads to arrive. Once she got to the dojo, the girl was nervous. Why was she so nervous? She let out a shaky breath as she turned her car off and headed to the back of the dojo.

          Izzy went through the gate and when she went into the back, she saw the familiar faces in the group of students lined up. She glanced over to see Johnny, and Mr. LaRusso, and another man that Izzy didn't recognize, but he seemed to be a Sensei from how he was standing.

         "Izzy?" Miguel's familiar voice filled the air and the girl looked over, seeing the boy smiling at her like he wasn't expecting to see her, and she smiled back, but all eyes shifted to the girl.

"I'm sorry, I–" Izzy apologized for just waltzing in, but then she saw Robby and he gave her another reassuring smile. She looked over at the three Sensei's. "I was hoping it isn't too late for me to join, if I can join."

          Mr. LaRusso and Johnny shared a look, and then Izzy watched as Daniel LaRusso looked out at the rest of the students. A content sigh came from Mr. LaRusso as he looked back at Izzy, a smile appearing on her lips.

"We were just getting started. Come on." Mr. LaRusso told the girl, letting her know that she was welcomed at Miyagi-Do and all it did was provoke a smile to form on Izzy's lips.

Izzy nodded as a way to say thank you, then she made her way over to the rest of the students. Her eyes briefly met with Sam's, but Sam looked away, and Izzy was just hoping that she would keep her distance.

"Hurry it up, champ." Johnny's voice spoke as Izzy filled a spot in between Miguel and Robby that they had made for her and the girl quickly bowed to the Senseis in front of her.

Miguel glanced over at Izzy as she stood back up, a smile on his lips. "I'm really glad you're here." He whispered to her.

Izzy returned the genuine smile, "I am too." She told him, both of their attentions going back to their Senseis.

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          Joining Miyagi-Do was the best decision she could have ever made. That's all she could think about after coming home from the dojo. Izzy used to be this bundle of anger and poison and now she felt like she was finally finding peace for herself. She was dating Miguel, they were both in the same dojo now, she has friends now who care.

          Izzy was doing perfectly fine without Cobra Kai.

She lay in bed, mindlessly scrolling through Instagram as she waited for Miguel, or just anyone, to text her back. There was a random show playing on her laptop to fill in the silence that was in the apartment since Izzy was the only one home with Kayla at work.

         Izzy could've drifted off to sleep if it wasn't for hearing something crash outside of her bedroom. She sat up a little bit, furrowing her eyebrows as she stayed quiet, listening to see if she could hear anything else. After a few seconds of nothing, Izzy got up from the bed and walked over to her closed bedroom door.

          Before leaving, she quickly looked around and picked up the empty metal water bottle sitting on her dresser to act as some sort of weapon. Izzy opened her bedroom door and walked out into the hallway and saw the front door was wide open. She didn't think of it as anything before, she wanted to assume that Kayla had come home because she always forgot her wallet that had her driver's license in it.

Izzy got to the end of the hall and looked into the living room, her heart dropped for a second when she saw who sitting on the couch. A scoff left Izzy's mouth, "What the fuck are you doing in my house?" She questioned.

"Oh, hey." Riley sat cross-legged on the couch, "You left your front door unlocked and I needed to talk to you, so I hope it's okay that I welcomed myself in." She smiled at Izzy. Was this girl psycho? That was all Izzy could think to herself.

          "Maybe text me next time like a normal fucking person." Izzy scoffed, walking over to set her water bottle down on the dining table.

          Riley stood up from the couch, "Right. I'm sorry. Anyway, I wanted to check up on you. I heard you're in Miyagi-Do now. You and Robby." She told the girl, her voice sounded fake, like it was forced kindness.

          Izzy crossed her arms over her chest. "Who told you that?" She asked.

          A laugh left Riley's lips, "Cobra Kai has ears everywhere." She shrugged, like it should've been obvious.

All it did was leave Izzy more confused, but she was starting to get a bad feeling about this and it made her tense up a little. She eyed Riley up and down before responding, "So what if I'm in Miyagi-Do?" Izzy looked at the girl.

"Well, Sensei Silver wants you back at the dojo, because you know.. you're the champion and all." Riley shrugged, mocking Izzy's movements, and crossed her arms over her chest as she walked closer to Izzy. "And our new Sensei wanted me to come talk to you." Riley explained.

          Izzy let out a laugh, although there was an uneasy feeling settling in her stomach when Riley stood in front of Izzy. "That's sweet and all, but I'm not going back to Cobra Kai, so can you please get the hell out?" Izzy asked.

          A sigh left Riley's lips, "I had a feeling you were gonna say that." She frowned for a split second, and Riley didn't give Izzy a chance to respond before going to kick her foot at Izzy's face.

         Izzy blocked the kick, furrowing her eyebrows at the girl as she felt herself get angry. Izzy blocked a punch, then sent her fist to Riley's face, catching the girl off guard and used it as her chance to kick Riley in the chest and watched her stumble back into a side table. The picture frames sitting on it fell to the floor, one of them shattering and erupting into pieces of glass.

           A deep breath came from Izzy, "You're not going to win." Izzy told the other girl.

A bitter laugh came from Riley, "Neither are you." She huffed, reaching down to pick up a fairly large shard of glass from the picture frame.

        Izzy backed up a little bit as Riley walked toward her, unsure of how to react out of fear, because Riley was serious. She felt like her throat was swelling up and Izzy recognized the feeling as fear. Izzy tried to swallow the lump in her throat, her eyes shifting from the glass in Riley's hand to her face.

"What are you–" Izzy didn't get to finish her question because Riley had thrown her hand out towards Izzy, but Izzy blocked it and sent her fist to collide with Riley's cheek.

          Riley grabbed ahold of Izzy's arm, using all of her strength to shove Izzy to the ground, then stomped her foot against Izzy's legs. A painful grunt left Izzy's mouth as she kicked her other leg up, hitting Riley in the face who bent to the ground and pinned Izzy to the floor.

          Izzy tried to catch her breath as Riley's knee pressed to her abdomen and she held up the glass, like it was a warning if Izzy dared to move.

          "Get the fuck off me." Izzy spat, wanting to push the girl off but there was fear blocking her from doing so, because she was scared that Riley would go far enough to hurt her.

"You're going to break up with Miguel." Riley stated, "Sensei Kim expects you to show up to Cobra Kai by Friday–" Izzy finally went to go push her off, but Riley grunted out of frustration, the piece of glass sliding down Izzy's upper arm and making a deep cut through the sleeve of her shirt.

A painful cry left Izzy's mouth, but Riley wrapped her hand around Izzy's throat, not allowing her to breathe as the blood began to seep from her arm.

"You're weak, Isobel, but.. you're a champion. Honestly, I don't understand why Sensei Silver thought you could ever lead Cobra Kai." Riley spat, "But Sensei Kim won't let you run away from this. So that's why I'm here." There was a hint of laughter in her voice.

Tears were sliding out of Izzy's eyes and down the sides of her face, her vision becoming blurry as she struggled to use the arm that wasn't injured and bleeding, but she seemed too distracted, physically and mentally, to fight back like she normally would.

"You made the wrong choice, Isobel. So Sensei Kim is letting you fix your mistake. Well– you don't really have a choice.." Riley lowered her face closer to Izzy's, "If you know what's best for you, you'd break up with Miguel and come back to Cobra Kai." She threatened the girl as Riley loosened her tight grip and allowed Izzy to breathe again.

"Or I'll give you a matching scar on your other arm." Riley then said through gritted teeth, but then she smiled as she stood back up, taking a step away from Izzy who stayed on the floor.

Riley winced as Izzy held her hand over the cut that had formed a small pool of blood on the kitchen floor. Izzy was silently crying on the floor, but Riley didn't offer to help her.

Instead, she just spoke to the hurt girl, "You should probably get that taken care of." Riley smiled slightly, muttering a 'see you later' before turning and leaving the apartment. She closed the door behind her and that allowed Izzy to let out the sobs that were itching at her throat.

It felt like she couldn't breathe and all of her emotions were all over the place, she didn't know if she felt angry, or scared, or heartbroken and sad. Everything was mixing together and it made Izzy feel horrible. Also the fact that there was a deep cut on her arm that hurt badly and Izzy didn't know what to do.

Izzy pushed herself off of the ground, her hand that was covering her cut was soaked in blood, and she lost her balance, stumbling back into the kitchen counter. She made her way back to her room, trying to find her phone to call someone to help her, and the only person Izzy could bare to call was her sister.

          Izzy was starting to think she wasn't destined to have a happy ending.

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          Izzy had spent the following day stuck in the hospital to fix the deep cut that Riley gave her. She had to talk Kayla out of pressing charges, because although Izzy wanted Riley to suffer, Izzy was scared more than anything. Izzy also didn't want this to get out, she felt like it would ruin everything more than it already had.

         She ignored Miguel's texts. In fact, she's been ignoring everyone's texts. She didn't tell anyone what happened, that Riley attacked her or that she spent a whole day and night in the hospital. It gave Izzy a lot of time to think, to actually pick apart every single thought in her head. And when Kayla would fall asleep in the chair beside Izzy's hospital bed, Izzy would cry.

          All Izzy could think about was that if she didn't break up with Miguel, her life would only get worse. She was already in the hospital, so what could possibly be worse than that? Izzy really didn't want to find out. Izzy hasn't felt this level of fear since the night she answered the door to police officers in the middle of the night, only to tell her that her father died.

          And when Izzy was finally let out of the hospital, all she could hear on the ride home was Kayla going on and on about how she was going to kill the girl who did this. Izzy tuned her out halfway through, closing her eyes and trying not to start crying again, because she didn't want to end things with Miguel, especially on this note.

          Izzy didn't say a word during the entire car ride or when they got home. She went straight to her room, closed the door, and collapsed onto her bed, staring up at the ceiling. A long and deep sigh left Izzy's mouth as she heard her phone buzz once again, she picked up the phone and saw the several messages Miguel had sent to her.

Miguel <3
Izzyyyyy

Miguel <3
Isobellllll

Miguel <3
Are you okay?? You aren't answering me :/

Miguel <3
Nina and Robby haven't heard from you either

Miguel <3
Pls text me when you get the chance, I miss you

          Izzy felt tears form in her eyes and she quickly sat up, wincing at the pain in her arm that was hurt. A shaky breath left her lips just as some tears fell from her eyes when she looked down at her phone.

She took a deep breath in and then exhaled it out right before she began typing the message she was going to send. Izzy struggled to hold back the tears as her finger hovered over the send button once she finished typing, hesitating on sending the message. But, her thumb pressed down on the button.

Izzy
hey, can we talk somewhere?

Izzy wiped away the tears that were rolling down her cheeks, sniffling a little bit, trying to calm herself down by telling herself it was going to be okay. Izzy watched as the 'delivered' sign turn to say 'read', and it began to really sink in for the girl.

She wanted to get it done with, so Miguel said they could meet up at Miyagi-Do to talk. The boy didn't know what he was expecting, he ignored Eli's prediction that Izzy was going to break up with him. Miguel thought maybe Izzy was ready to talk about her mom, or maybe something happened and she wanted to vent, Miguel was ready to listen and be on her side.

          He sat in the back of Miyagi-Do, patiently waiting for Izzy to show up and when she did, a smile appeared on his lips when he saw her walking toward him. When she saw him, she gave him a weak smile, but it disappeared just as quickly as it showed up.

When Miguel got up and walked closer to Izzy, his smile faded when he saw how exhausted she looked. She looked like she hasn't slept (she hasn't) and her cheeks were stained with tears. She wore a jacket, despite the heat being nearly miserable for Miguel and his thin long-sleeved shirt.

"Hey, are you okay?" His voice was gentle and worried, and it just made Izzy feel worse about what she had to do.

           "Um, I'm fine. I–" Izzy stopped herself, unsure of what to say, and it made Miguel's eyebrows knit together. A sigh left Izzy's lips, "I think.." She really didn't want to do this. "I think we need a break." Izzy told him, forcing herself to not cry.

          Miguel's mouth opened, but nothing came out. He was taken aback by her words, but he shook his head as he spoke, "Wait– what? I don't understand." A weary laugh left his lips, "When.. when you say 'break', what–what do you mean?" Miguel asked her, not wanting to assume the worst, but he knew it was coming.

"I just.. something happened and I need time to think and I–I can't have any distractions–" Izzy explained, her voice cracking a little bit as her eyes met with Miguel's and he looked heartbroken.

"Am I.. I'm a distraction?" Miguel questioned, but it just made Izzy let out a sigh, having to look away from the boy who kept his eyes on her.

She shook her head, trying to hide the fact that she was on the verge of crying. "We–" Izzy's breath was shaky, "We should've just ended it at the tournament." She muttered, but Miguel heard her clearly.

         Miguel was silent and Izzy couldn't bring herself to look at him, but she brought her hand up to wipe away tears that fell from her eyes. "Izzy," Miguel whispered, "Look at me." He told her, his hands holding both sides of her face to have her look up at him.

          "What happened?" Miguel asked, he seemed like he knew something had to have happened, but he could tell Izzy wasn't going to tell him the truth.

He wanted to know why Izzy was doing this, especially when they've been fine. His immediate thought was Cobra Kai, but even if that was the case, Izzy seemed like she wasn't going to confess what was making her do this.

But, Izzy shook her head, not having the strength to tell him the truth to him. "I can't tell you, I just– I need to figure this out on my own, and I don't.. I don't know if I can do that when I'm with you." Izzy explained to him, her eyes set on his face.

          She didn't want to tell him what happened with Riley, because she didn't want Miguel to worry about her when this wasn't his fight. Riley, and Cobra Kai, scared Izzy into doing this, all because she chose to be the boy that she was in love with instead of the dojo that paid for her to win. Izzy felt like she had no choice right now.

          As long as Cobra Kai was around, Izzy couldn't feel happy with Miguel.

Miguel let out a sigh and Izzy noticed a tear or two slip out of his eyes. He wiped the tears away with his sleeve, "I get that. I.. you know I want what's best for you. If it's with me, or.. or not, it's okay. I told you I'll always be rooting for you. I meant it." Miguel smiled at the girl and he saw the corners of her lips twitch upwards, but she didn't fully smile.

"If a.. a break is what you need, I'm okay with that." Miguel sounded like it broke his heart to say that, because it wasn't okay at all, but he knew it was what Izzy wanted and probably needed, and he didn't want to get in the way of that.

Izzy nodded, smiling to herself. She was surprised Miguel was okay with it, or maybe he was really good at pretending to be. "I'll still see you here.. at the dojo. I–I don't think I'm going to leave Miyagi-Do. Not right now at least." She muttered, her words full of hope as she shrugged her shoulders slightly.

"Yeah," Miguel smiled at the girl, "We just won't see each other outside of the dojo." He spoke out loud and the girl nodded again, confirming his words.

"Miguel, I–" Izzy sighed, staring up at him. She had so many things to say, but felt like it was useless. "I really don't want to do this." She whispered.

"It's okay. It'll be okay." He reassured her, "It's not like I'm going to be out of your life forever, right? Just.. no more boyfriend or girlfriend for right now." Miguel asked, the fear of never being able to be around Izzy again consuming him.

A smile appeared on Izzy's face, "Right." She agreed, but then silence took over for a few seconds and Izzy let out a quiet sigh.

"I should head home. I–I told my sister that I wasn't going to be out long." Izzy spoke like she didn't want to leave, because then it would be set in stone that she and Miguel wouldn't be together anymore.

Miguel nodded, "Yeah, I should probably, um.. head home too. I guess I'll see you at practice?" He asked her, his voice was low and heartbreak was dripping from every word.

"Yeah," Izzy weakly smiled, but then a sigh left her lips and she stood a little taller to wrap her arms around Miguel's neck, pulling him into a hug. Miguel wasted no time holding her tight and close to him, scared that if he let go, he wouldn't know if he could feel her touch again.

After a few moments, Izzy eventually pulled away from the hug. She was forcing herself to not start crying when she felt Miguel's eyes on her and Izzy would preferably sob her eyes out in her car instead of her now ex-boyfriend.

Miguel sent her one last small smile, going to turn and walk off, but Izzy was quick to stop him. "Wait–" She breathed out, watching him turn to face her.

The girl took a few steps closer to him, her hands cupping each side of his face and pulling his lips to hers. Miguel kissed back, even though it just broke his (and hers) heart more knowing this was a goodbye kiss. Their last kiss for all they know.

Miguel held her close by the waist as they kissed, but after a few more seconds, Izzy pulled away again. He smiled at her, but there were tears visible in his eyes, just like Izzy's. Miguel muttered a quiet 'I'll see you later' to the girl before turning and walking off to leave the dojo.

Izzy watched him leave, but she didn't leave so quickly. As Miguel walked off, he finally let himself cry once he wasn't near Izzy, the emotions getting too much for him to handle. He wanted to turn around, to tell her that he loved her, and that he wasn't going anywhere, but Miguel wanted to respect her decision. She needed time, and he was going to give her that.

The girl inhaled deeply, then breathed out, trying to control the tears fighting to pour down her face. She stayed behind a few minutes, trying to collect herself before she walked out of here knowing Miguel was no longer her boyfriend.

It hurt. It hurt Izzy so bad, because she never thought she could love a boy this much, but Miguel caught her by surprise and now he was slipping through her finger. And there was nothing she could do about it.

Izzy knew this wasn't going to be easy, but it was all she could do. All Izzy could hope for was that whatever waited for her at Cobra Kai, it wasn't any worse than what Riley put her through.

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authors note.
theyre so in love it makes me sick. get ready for the post breakup angst because it's going to be messy and it's going to hurt </3

i have a really cute scene planned that's going to make you all happy though so don't hate me forever for their breakup 🤞

( gif made by saevrz )