My Cobra Guy

Episode Seven

Even if the sleeping bag was sweaty and clung to him, Johnny had no desire to leave the tent. He'd heard the conversation last night. He was going to have to pair up with Daniel. Worst of all, Johnny had no idea what the activities were, yet Sam did. Why had Daniel not shared the plans with him? Did Daniel not view him as an equal? Then again, he did try to ask at some point last night if Johnny had any ideas. Still...

No. Why am I even asking this. That bitch looks down on me, just because of that tournament. Well, fuck him.

Fuck him?

Johnny shook his head. Images filled his mind of Daniel's smile, his gentle laugh. He mentally swatted them away. He was supposed to be angry right now but honestly, more than anything, he felt hurt. His pride was wounded. At least at the tournament, Daniel had beat him fair and square. Showed that he was the better fighter. Now, he was the one playing dirty, "sweeping the leg" on Johnny. Stealing his beer? Calling him out in front of the kids? That was a low blow.

The worst part was, Daniel had a point. Johnny did try to find his peace of mind in a cold can and yet it only left him more miserable than ever the next day. Fine, if he wants to try and make me look bad in front of our students, I'll show him I can go a weekend without a brew. I can handle myself just fine. Who is gonna look like the asshole then?

Fuck hiding in this tent, he was going to get up, maybe do some sit-ups, and be the great sensei he knew he was. Hell, if Miguel was any indication, he was a kick ass sensei!

Mentally pumping himself up, Johnny dressed in a black sweatshirt with his favorite black bandana tied around his head. He was ready to face the day. He'd show Danielle.

* * * * *

Daniel looked up from his sandwich, expecting to see a surly and confrontational Johnny. Hell, he hadn't expected Johnny to wake until nearly noon. Daniel hadn't even woken the kids yet.

He dropped his sandwich. This morning, Johnny's eyes were alert. Sparkling even? His hair gleamed in the gray light filtering through the treetops. He had some of that spark Daniel remembered from their youth. His old rival finally looked like someone worthy to be his rival, not someone who'd given up.

"Morning, Danielle," Johnny said, flashing white teeth. "Take a picture; it'll last longer. You know you can do that with your phone."

Daniel turned his gaze to the fallen sandwich. Kale, arugula, avocado, and turkey slices were scattered across the fallen leaves and ash from last night's campfire. Fuck! Why had he been staring?

"I...I know how phones work," Daniel stammered. "You just..." He busied himself reassembling his sandwich even though he wasn't going to eat it. His hands just needed to do something. "You look good. After a night of not drinking, that is." He chuckled nervously.

* * * * *

Johnny's face felt hot all of a sudden. This wasn't an insult from Daniel. Danielle. He'd been prepared for an insult. How was he supposed to react to this?

Hah! Maybe it was a roundabout insult - a way for Daniel to take credit for bettering him, like he was someone who needed Daniel to save him or make decisions for him.

What was Danielle doing with that sandwich? He looked oddly flustered. His smile was sheepish, not a hint of malice.

"Got another sandwich for me?" Johnny asked, suddenly remembering that time he'd landed atop Daniel at the dojo.

"I can make you one." Daniel got up and tripped over the leg of his folding chair. Bastard righted himself before he could face-plant in the leaves.

That's right, Danielle. Make me a sandwich.

Danielle bent over in front of the cooler situated near the fire. His jeans clung to his ass, riding down low enough to provide Johnny with a view of his yellow silk boxers.

Johnny immediately looked away. He didn't want to see that!

Why yellow though? It reminded Johnny of sunflowers. What a bitch with flower-colored undies.

"So, I have some team activities planned for today," Daniel said.

Johnny retied his bandana. "Heard you last night. I can hear inside the tent. Don't you know how tents work?"

"So, we're gonna work together and show the kids we can," Daniel said, his voice becoming tense.

"If you'd stop treating me like a child."

"If you'd stop acting like one."

"Your daughter called you a man-child."

Daniel held up a hand holding two slices of wheat bread, sissy bread. It probably even had multiple grains in it. What was wrong with just one? "I'm not doing this. We need to make an effort, because they think we're asking them to do something we can't do. They look up to us."

"Here's how you can make an effort: if you want to say something to me, don't do it in front of them." Johnny held back the rest of what he was going to say. The kids didn't need to wake to arguments.

"You know what? I never once looked at Mr. Miyagi and thought he made poor choices. He always seemed to know what to do. That's what we need to be for those kids. We need to be a team. A united front against Cobra Kai. We have to not only try to get along, but we have to be on the same page. We need to be role models they can look up to, as ours were to us."

"What? Some perfect guy who never fucks up? Someone they can't be? You're not Miyagi and I'm not Kreese. Those aren't the role models they need."

Daniel stared at him, the sandwich forgotten. His brows lowered in confusion, then locked eyes with him, as if Johnny had said something revolutionary. "You know, you're not wrong. I tend to think of Miyagi as perfect but he wasn't. He was wise, knowledgeable in karate. Kreese is obviously an asshole but he knows how to fight. If we can find some middle ground between those two, we can find our own technique. If we can find a balance..."

Johnny could hardly believe the words Daniel was saying. Miyagi had been, well, kind of like a god to Daniel. His name was the name of the dojo. Daniel was always pushing himself to be another Miyagi rather than finding his own way. Johnny knew he sure as hell didn't meet Miyagi's standards. But Daniel wasn't wrong. Kreese had molded Johnny, shaped him into a disciplined fighter. Made him strong physically and mentally. Perhaps with Miyagi's morals and Kreese's might, they could finally find a balance.

"Find a balance, and realize you had something to add to what Miyagi taught you. You were the one who beat me in the tournament." Even made Johnny cry like a little bitch. "And you give the credit to him? It wasn't Miyagi's fists and kicks, Danielle. It was you. It pisses me off that you keep giving credit to him when it was you."

Daniel blushed. "He, he taught me, though."

Seeing Daniel's cheeks redden and how he avoided eye contact had heat creeping up Johnny's neck but before anything else could be said, a tent flap unzipped.

Sam, ever her father's daughter, stepped out. "Dad, what are you even trying to do?"

Daniel had half a sandwich on a paper plate. It had way too much green crap on it. Wasn't that supposed to be Johnny's sandwich?

"Oh, uh, nothing. Um, let's get everyone up and fed. Time to start the day." Daniel hurriedly attempted to fix the sandwich before thrusting it in Johnny's direction, still unable to look him in the eye.

"Um, yeah, so, let's talk about the activities." He cleared his throat and Johnny took the sandwich. It looked disgusting but he took it as a peace offering of sorts. They were going to try. At this point, trying was better than the petty bullshit they had been throwing at each other so far. It was a start.