Like A Phoenix ➳ Cobra Kai

There's Always A Rich Friend (16)

Upon reaching Cobra Kai's semi-transparent glass doors that led into the dojo, Kat gazed through the hazy windows to find her friends, dressed in their respective Gi's, and their Sensei talking with a much older man. The older man appeared intimidating. He clung to a dingy pale green jacket as he inched closer while speaking to their Sensei. He must be a friend. Before peering away from the strange man, his eyes drifted in her direction. Kat felt a cold, ice-ridden stare pierce through the glass from where she stood, and with his eyes narrowed, he turned away. Now frazzled by the awkward sighting, Kat huffed a deep breath and swung the door open.

As Kat walked towards her friends, the older man again sharpened his gaze in her direction, but instead of being cold, he squinted his already narrowed eyes with confusion. She shook the encounter off and stood in the front row between Aisha and Eli in her usual place.

As usual, the class begins with warmups, as the students throw punches and loosen up before the actual session starts. Kat notices the older man's emotionless face, except he's only looking at Miguel. Before finishing warmups, however, the students decided to 'dab' as a martial arts move. The motion made Kat's nose scrunch up a bit as she muffled a laugh. Instead of their Sensei responding humorously as the class expected, he drops his posture and cowers insecurely next to the man who stood taller than him at his side.

It was evident to Kat there was something unusual about their Sensei today. He seemed on edge. Unlike their Sensei, the usually sarcastic asshole, he quickly became severe and almost short-tempered. At this acknowledgment, she understood, the man who pressed against the wall behind Sensei was no ordinary man. It was the devil himself. Maybe that's an exaggeration, but Kat only saw Sensei like this once, and for whatever reason, it was during Robby's fight with Eli.

At the sudden glance from their Sensei, Kat diverted her eyes downward, where she fiddled with her hands in shame. "Class is canceled today. You can all come back tomorrow at 5 am. Otherwise, you're off the team." He bellowed with a brewing rage. "Oh, and don't wear your uniforms. It won't be that kind of day." Sensei scoffed, trudging into the Cobra Kai office.

Whatever it was, she wasn't excited about it. With most of the students talking amongst themselves and others leaving disappointed, Kat took class getting canceled as an opportunity to spend time with Eli. She turned to look back to find Eli, who wore a smug grin while over pronouncing his jawline. "So, it would seem that we have the day off...."

Hawk grinned flirtatiously, "What do you have in mind, princess?"

"Nothing much, just you and I watching the entire Harry Potter film series, watching the stars with only the finest red wine from Napa. Then again, who knows where the night may lead us?" Kat breathlessly whispered, inching closer to Eli's face.

The sudden wave of spearmint graced Hawk's senses. God, even her breath was perfect. Hawk wanted to scream and dance around like a fucking nerd at Kat's suggestive offer. He repressed the urge and nodded smugly. "Sounds like a plan, gorgeous."

Kat's smile faded once she heard Eli shout, "Race ya!" Before she knew it, he was already halfway out the door. She pushed her heels into the ground and used her weight to spring herself into action. Although Eli was fast, she was faster than him. Kat grit her teeth as Eli reached her mom's 80's, red, restored car before she did.

Hawk gruffly teased Kat as his muscles expanded underneath his Gi. "You didn't see that coming?"

She pursed her lips in defeat. "I'll give you this one." Kat laughed while unlocking the passenger door for Eli. "What are you going to tell your mom? I'm sure she wouldn't like the idea of us spending time alone, and together, at that." She pouted, licking the rim of her lips.

"Pfft. Easy—"He retorted as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. Kat watched his sizable hands type away at his touch screen. Upon reaching his mom's voicemail, the tone of voice changed instantly. Hawk took a deep breath and pitched the sound of his voice, "Hey, Mom. I'm spending the night with Demetri. We're going to hang out, maybe order a pizza and watch Star Wars. I'll let you know if I need anything. Bye, love you." He lied, grinning at himself like a child. "And that, princess, is how it's done."

Kat nodded, impressed by his sudden self-assurance. "Well then, I suppose we have today to ourselves." She replied with glee, leaning in for a kiss from Eli as the two interlocked lips.

In the car, Kat turned on the older radio to avoid the lingering tension that brewed in the tightly squeezed vehicle. As a routine for the slightly dated car she drove, Kat kept nearly a dozen music albums of all different genres in her backseat, but nothing beats Gwen Stefani. In the dashboard was an album of Gwen Stefani's "Sweet Escape," a favorite she loved dearly. Unbeknownst to Kat, Eli loved No Doubt, though it was something he wouldn't dare confess to his friends.

"Do you like this kind of music?" Kat asked, briefly glancing over at Eli.

He scoffed. "Do I like it? I fucking love this song."

Once the chorus began, Kat sang along with the song, albeit she wasn't much of a singer. Hawk, who still addressed himself as such, felt comfortable with Kat. She never made him feel embarrassed or not good enough. With her, he wasn't Eli nor Hawk. He was somewhere in between. This time, he let his guard down and belted the chorus with Kat.

"And I could be your favorite girl, forever. Perfectly together. And tell me, boy, now wouldn't that be sweet?" They sang in sync.

After the song, Kat noticed Eli loosen up. Right on time, she pulled into the driveway of her house, and the two began unpacking the car of their belongings. "I don't think it's possible to watch all eight movies of Harry Potter in less than a few hours. Do you?"

Kat shook her head and laughed. "Oh, definitely not. I plan to skip to the fifth year when everyone's hot. Also, why do we have less than a few hours? You're spending the night, aren't you?"

"Duh. It's because we have karate tomorrow at 5 am. That's ridiculously early. I'm sleeping early tonight." Hawk confessed, picking up the duffel bags.

In response, Kat nodded. She placed the house key from her necklace into the locked door. A short-lived screech echoed from the turned knob as the two entered the massive home. Eli's eyes scanned each area, from the red oak floor to the large, semi-modern living room. It was heavenly.

"Jesus, Kat. You didn't mention your family was loaded." Hawk remarked while analyzing his surroundings.

She snorted at his response. "Well, my mom is a world-renowned trauma surgeon who sends thousands a month to support me, and my grandma was the co-inventor of Toaster Strudel in the 80s. Unfortunately, she lost her shit when my grandpa died, and instead of being involved in the brand, she sold the other half to the Weiner's for millions in revenue and got monthly royalties. But, if you tell anyone about this, I'll deny everything." Kat retorted, her eyes narrowly glaring at Eli.

Hawk raised his hands in surrender, "Woah, look. I won't tell anyone." At this notion, Kat breathed a sigh of relief, diverting her attention to the empty rocking chair her grandma always sits in. Clearing his throat, Hawk spoke up. "So, if you're loaded, then why do you drive that old car in the driveway? I mean, you could have anything, but why that?"

Kat's eyes drooped at the mention of her mom's car from the '80s. "It's the closest thing I have to my mom other than my looks. She's never here, but my ruby red baby outside," Kat shared with a sad grin, "She never left me." She shook off the memory of her childhood and hoped Eli wouldn't ask more questions. "We can order something, or I can call a chef from my grandma's phone book. Whichever you'd prefer, but don't worry too much about dessert. I have that covered," she replied with a wink.