𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓 : 3.1k

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𝐀𝐁𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐔𝐓𝐄𝐋𝐘 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐃 Gwen for the amount of attention she received upon her very first step into the Cobra Kai dojo. From the moment the bell above the door tolled, every pair of eyes was drawn towards her, their previously held conversations puttering out into nothing. At first, all the attention made her feet stutter to a stop, but Gwen was quick to cover up her astonishment. Her shoulders fell back, exposing her neck and her perfect posture while she pretended that she only paused in order to shuck her shoes off and hang her bag on a hook. She was suddenly the picture of confidence, donning her usual look that simply radiated superiority.

Gwen could hear their whispers as she waded through the clusters of onlookers. More than once, she heard her own name pass through the strangers' lips and it brought a smirk to her own. She did her best to smother the expression, trying desperately to seem aloof as she searched through the crowd for a familiar face.

The first that stood out to her belonged to Eli, of course.

However, she saw him long before he saw her. He seemed to be totally engrossed in whatever conversation he was having with some old guy in street clothes. Gwen hadn't noticed that she had frozen right in the middle of the dojo, or that she hadn't stopped staring at Eli from the very first moment she saw him. All she could do was silently urge him to glance in her direction, for his eyes to light up at the sight of her too, then for him to stop everything he was doing and make his way over like nothing mattered more than getting over to her as soon as possible.

"Check out all these new recruits, huh?" commented a familiar voice from below. "Guess your demo at Valley Fest really worked."

Her gaze dropped to the source of the sound, shattering her undivided attention on Eli. But as soon as she saw that it was Miguel's face looking up at her, Gwen could feel her shoulders loosen, dropping back down to their normal height. "I guess so," she said, her chest puffing out with a deep breath in. Most of the fellow trainees hadn't moved on with their day just yet, still completely transfixed by her presence anywhere outside of school. "They do have a bit of a staring problem, though, don't they?"

Miguel chuckled as he continued with his stretching. "Yeah, we, uh... don't see girls like you in the dojo very often," he confessed with a bashful drop of his head. It was almost like the words left his mouth before he got the chance to lasso them back into the hidden corner of his mind.

But Gwen had already sunk her teeth into this little Freudian slip. "Girls like me?" she teasingly echoed, a smirk on her lips as she met him down on the mat.

His eyes rolled dramatically, but still didn't meet hers. "You know what I mean."

Gwen instantly shook her head. "No. No, I don't think I do," she said, stubbornly. "Care to elaborate?"

Miguel was visibly wary when he looked up at her again, his mouth opening and closing as he did his best to mull over each word before he spoke. "I mean, it's nothing you don't already know. I'm sure a million guys have told you just how pr–"

"Holy shit. What the hell is he doing here?"

Normally, Gwen would have loved to hear anything complimentary—regardless if she had heard it a million times or if it was coming from someone like Miguel Diaz. But a frightened chill had slithered down her spine the moment that 'old man in street clothes' turned around and revealed himself to be that raggedy antique that had bothered her in the school parking lot a few days prior.

Could he seriously have followed her all the way to this dojo? Was there a chance that he had seen her at Valley Fest or something? Gwen was already running through all the ways in which he could have made it here, in the same room as her. But even with all the time in the world, she couldn't have possibly guessed the real answer.

"Oh, Mr. Kreese?" Miguel asked, grateful to have the spotlight off of him for the time being. "Apparently, he used to know Sensei. He's just been observing classes lately, but... I don't know, he's got a weird energy."

She began to imitate Miguel's stretches, easily bending into the Butterfly position without taking her eyes off of this Kreese guy. "Definitely giving To Catch a Predator vibes," she muttered, her upper lip curling.

"You seem to know him pretty well, though..." he trailed off, more of a question than a statement.

Gwen pursed her lips sheepishly. "Yeah. I, uh... threatened to pepper spray him the other day," she explained.

This was enough to make Miguel's eyebrows shoot up into his hairline. "You what?"

"And I may have called him saggy."

"Gwen, you–

"And senile."

The subsequent silence was deafening. Gwen and Miguel stared at one another, unsure of what to say after her impromptu confessional. His succession of heavy blinks spoke a thousand words all on their own and yet, he still managed to muster up something to say in response to... that.

"O-kay. So, I'm assuming you guys won't be fast friends or anything."

Unable to help herself, Gwen threw her head back and laughed aloud, a burst of sound that filled the room and inflated Miguel's pride. A warm smile overtook his face without him even having to think about it.

"You're probably right, but I don't think I've ever been fast friends with anyone, honestly," she admitted, seemingly unbothered by this fact. But Miguel wasn't buying it.

"I don't know. I mean, you're doing a pretty good job right now," he shrugged with a lopsided grin.

The previously carefree expression on Gwen's face stiffened as soon as those words left his lips. She could feel a nervous, tingly feeling radiate out from the center of her chest as she attempted to process such a rare compliment. After all, Miguel wasn't far off earlier when he said that millions of guys had called her pretty, but nobody had ever accused her of being easy to get along with. Not even her own mother would have claimed that she was agreeable in any way. So, she couldn't really help but feel totally taken aback by such a casual comment that Miguel had just casually dropped right in the middle of their conversation.

Quick to regain her cool, Gwen forced a scoff that she hoped was believable enough. "It's really cute that you think we're actually friends," she bluffed. Suddenly feeling abnormally flustered, Gwen busied her hands with slicking her hair up and into a ponytail. She just hoped that Miguel wouldn't pay any attention to the tinge of burning pink on the tips of her ears.

Over her shoulder, Sensei Lawrence finally burst into the room. "Listen up!" he barked, making Gwen nearly jump out of her skin. And yet, he swiftly deserted his initial brusqueness as soon as he saw the sheer volume of attendance. His steps slowed as he surveyed the room, but his outward affect remained calm and unbothered. "I see we've got some new recruits..."

Gwen rolled up and onto her feet as Sensei Lawrence took his place at the front of the room, a little more than an arm's length away from her. "Everybody, fall in. In neat rows and lines," he specified, his unwavering stare still moving calculatedly across every face in the room. "It's time to see what you're made of."

Sensei Lawrence weaved through the rows, tossing out some snide comments for the ginger twins and a thirty-year-old who had decided karate was his newest passion. Gwen stood, unmoving at the front of the classroom with her arms tucked behind her back. In her peripheral vision, she could see Sensei Lawrence come around her shoulder, but she knew better than to turn and meet his eye.

"And what about you, princess? You think you've got what it takes?" he challenged, his tone obviously goading. But for once in her goddamned life, Gwen chose not to give an explosive reaction just because it was what was expected of her.

She kept her voice even when she answered, "Guess we'll just have to see, huh?"

Unfulfilled by this reply, Sensei Lawrence finished his journey back to the front of the room and turned to face the group again. "I thought my last group of recruits was pathetic..." he grumbled. "But if you do what I tell you to do, you'll at least have a chance at becoming a fighter. But to do that, you gotta fight. So... which one of you has the balls to take on the champ?"

A tense hush fell over the room. The prospect of fighting Miguel seemed to be nerve-wracking to literally everyone—even the kids who had been taking karate just as long as he had. And although Gwen was confrontational, she wasn't stupid. There was no chance that she would win that fight, no matter how badly she wanted it.

A feminine voice from the back of the room abruptly tore a hole through the prolonged silence. "I'll take him on."

The entire class parted dramatically, revealing the girl that had stood previously hidden behind them. Gwen's eyes narrowed as she did a quick onceover of the girl's appearance. It was honestly shocking to see, because although she possessed lanky, muscular limbs, ill-fitting clothes, and grown out roots, this newcomer was... pretty and Gwen hated this fact immensely. Jealousy grew heavy in the pit of her stomach the longer she looked at the girl, a sullen look slowly taking over her face in the process.

"Oh, you will, huh?" Sensei Lawrence retorted, a smirk evident in his voice.

But the girl was undeterred. Her nod was immediate, paired with a self-assured cock of her eyebrow. "I saw your little demo at Valley Fest," she provoked, holding the older man's gaze. "You guys can put on a show. But can you actually fight?"

Gwen could feel the hairs on the back of her neck bristle over this perceived dig at her. She thought she had successfully fooled everyone with her performance at Valley Fest, but this new girl clearly wasn't so impressed. Gwen blew a sharp exhale through her nose—a not-so-distant cousin to the snarl she wished to let out.

"That sounds like a challenge," Sensei Lawrence said, navigating through the crowd.

The girl assertively tilted her chin upwards. "I like a challenge."

Gwen's fists tightened at her sides, balling against the white of her gi. She knew that she could've easily been just as daring, just as defiant as this new, nameless girl. She should've taken the risk and stepped up to fight Miguel in order to prove herself, but she hadn't even had the guts to look Sensei Lawrence in the eye. Her lips screwed into a scowl the more she thought about it, internally kicking her own ass for being so docile on her very first day.

"Mr. Diaz, show Little Miss Hotshot here what Cobra Kai is all about," Sensei Lawrence ordered, marching back up to the front of the class.

Little Miss Hotshot? That was what she got? While Gwen got Princess? She could hear her teeth squeak against each other the harder her jaw clenched. Still, she moved to the far edges of the room along with everyone else, making room for the demonstrative fight. She held her hands behind her back to avoid anyone seeing her nails digging so angrily into her skin.

When Gwen looked over at Miguel in the center of the room, he was in the same position that she was, his hands tucked politely out of sight. He let out a sigh as he strolled closer to his opponent. "Look, are you sure you wanna do–"

But the girl was nowhere near as considerate, swiftly cutting him off with a rough kick to the chest. The swarm of spectators audibly gasped as Miguel went tumbling backwards. He collected his balance just in time, though, and let out an amused laugh. "Alright..." he grinned, getting into his fighting stance. "Game on."

Gwen watched the fight with bated breath, unsure of who she was even rooting for. She took note of the girl's every move, paying close attention to each uncoordinated jab that Miguel seemed to easily counter with his own breadth of experience. In fact, the girl was the first to hit the mat, landing flat on her back with Miguel looming over her.

But she didn't stay down for long. She rolled away from him and leapt to her feet, her curled fists shooting up in front of her face again. Then, she exploded with a flurry of punches, all swinging wide and out of control. "You're telegraphing!" Miguel huffed, kicking her legs out from underneath her. "Don't let me see it coming."

And her next move in retaliation? Hurling herself full-force into his abdomen and tackling him backwards onto the mat. She practically jumped upright again, smirking down at Miguel as he tried to catch his breath. "Did you see that coming?" she taunted.

Utilizing the final move in his repertoire, Miguel wrapped his legs around her ankles and twisted, hurling her down onto the mat with him. He was still huffing and puffing when he pushed up onto his elbows, casting a glance at her. "Maybe," he replied, releasing her so that he could rise to his feet. "My name's Miguel," he said, reaching a hand out to help her up.

"Tory," she said, her response still breathless. However, she used her last bit of energy to sling him over her back, using his outstretched arm as leverage. When he landed with a smack on the ground, she twisted his arm back and held his face against the mat. Gwen winced at the sight, unsure when it would have been cleaned last. Through Miguel's groans, Tory managed to specify, "With a 'Y.'"

Impressed glances were exchanged between Sensei Lawrence and Mr. Kreese and it made Gwen's blood boil. That should have been her. She swallowed anxiously as she watched Tory move to the outer edge of the mat. In spite of whatever jealousy or intimidation she was feeling, it was at that moment that Gwen knew what she had to do if she really wanted to make it in Cobra Kai.

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer and all that, right?

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Gwen kept a socially acceptable distance between herself, Aisha, and Tory when they walked out of class that afternoon, but she still followed their footsteps all the way to the Corner Mart by the dojo. The place was relatively dingy and extremely stuffy, the archaic A/C unit and box fan duo doing little to quell the summer heat. But Gwen suffered through it, wandering around the store and pretending to shop through the inexplicably wide array of items the shop sold.

She couldn't help but eye Tory in between boxes of cereal and bottles of mouthwash, though. She hadn't yet seen an opportunity to approach her, her mind cycling through all kinds of scenarios and conversation starters and still coming up short. Every last one of them was inevitably tainted by her own frustration. Gwen just hoped that she would know the perfect icebreaker when she saw it—something that felt natural and believable.

Through the shelves, Gwen could hear Aisha's ringtone play, followed by an audible groan. "Let me guess... Dick pic?" Tory asked, sliding past her to get to the coolers. Gwen had to stifle the amused grin that crept into the corners of her lips, but Aisha was able to let out a genuine chuckle.

"No..." she sighed. "My mom wants me to go to the beach club with her."

Gwen's ears perked up. Her family had a membership at the local beach club, too. Perhaps her personal mission of identifying an 'in' with the new girl would go smoother than anticipated.

"Oh my god, that sounds so miserable," Tory replied, sarcastically. But there was an unmistakably playful undertone behind her words.

"No, it's just... this girl, Sam's probably gonna be there, and she and I are not on good terms," Aisha explained, her shoulders slumping. She shook her head, lips pursed. "Whatever. I'm Aisha, by the way."

"Tory," she nodded, accompanied by her first genuine smile since she arrived on the scene.

The two girls launched headfirst into a conversation about bracelets and kickboxing, but Gwen was still locked in on finding the best way into their circle. It took sorting through every potential introduction for her to realize that the best way to not call attention to her spiteful jealousy was to just pretend like it could never possibly exist—like she was the sweetest girl in the Valley.

Gwen slid out from her hiding spot, sidling up to Aisha with a toss of her hair and a toothy smile. "Aishaaa... When were you going to introduce me to your new friend here?" she asked, all high-pitched and sing-songy. However, her eyes were so intensely focused on Tory's face that she completely missed the confused frown that morphed Aisha's features.

"What? I didn't even know her–"

Gwen didn't let her finish, her hand jabbing out and hanging stiffly in the air between them. "Gwen Villanueva," she said, unwavering in her effort to appear unperturbed.

Tory hesitated before shaking her hand, but ultimately met her mid-air, her calloused fingers wrapping around Gwen's manicured ones. "Tory."

"It's actually my first day at Cobra Kai, too," Gwen added with an upwards tilt of her chin.

But instead of this fact impressing her, Tory's eyebrow cocked. "Weren't you in the demo at Valley Fest, though?"

Gwen could practically feel the artificial warmth drain from her gaze. It took all of her willpower just to keep the smile on her face, but she knew that if she let her guard slip, everything could be lost. So, she merely clenched her jaw, the tension there causing her lower lip to twitch. "Yeah, I was," she answered, curtly.

"So... what? They just let you be the star of the show with no prior training?" Tory scoffed.

Gwen propped her hands against her hips. "Yeah, basically. Kind of like a very intense trial run," she shrugged, trying her hardest to seem nonchalant. "So, the fact that I'm still here pretty much speaks for itself."

Tory studied her for a moment... like, really studied her, eyes narrowed into slits and everything. But even under her calculated stare, which threatened to tear her to shreds with just a single, noticeable flaw, Gwen remained equal parts chipper and serene. "I guess you're right," she conceded, her facial muscles relaxing at last.

And although, internally, she felt like she finally broke through the surface and could draw in her first, real breath in minutes, Gwen casually crossed her arms over her chest and glanced between the two girls.

"Now... What was I hearing about Sam LaRusso and the beach club?"