Like A Phoenix ➳ Cobra Kai

I Can't Save Us (37)

The chanting of students bellow throughout the halls and into the computer science lab, where Kat and Hawk continue to stand. In a nearby room of the lab, the racket of something loud echoing calls the attention of Hawk.

Hawk grins, "Thanks for the help, princess, but I think I just found Demetri," he gloats, now rushing to the room where he heard the sound.

Slightly hesitant, Kat left the computer lab and ran through the herd of students near the school's stairs. She scanned the crowd of people in a desperate attempt to find her friends, and then, she narrowed her vision on Miguel and Robby. The two continued to fight on the staircase as Sam and Tory were heard grunting and screaming on the higher floor.

Kat sighed, taking a deep breath. She then sprinted up the stairs and flew to find her other friends before something bad happened.

Upon reaching the top of the stairs, Kat saw the darkened eyes of Tory-glaring daggers into her soul. "Leave," she grumbled.

She shook her head. "You know I can't."

Tory scoffed, "Then I guess you'll join LaRusso in a body bag," she snapped as she pulled a spiked belt from her pocket, then tied it around her hands.

"We'll see about that," Sam confidently retorted.

With each step Kat took, she felt an uneasy sense of dread, like something bad was coming full circle. She took a deep breath and took one last step towards Tory before becoming at arms reach of the troubled girl.

Then, nothing. Only the burning sting of a freshly cut gash across Kat's wrist was heard, as blood trickled onto the floor. Kat remained still as if planted in place, a sigh of relief escaped her lips as she fell to her knees.

Tory looked down at her spiked knuckles and pierced belt. She felt silenced by the dark red substance that gathered around the sharp points and edges of the sharpened knuckles. Gasping, Tory shifted her gaze at Kat, who gradually began to lose color of her face as her body grew limp.

"Look what you did," Sam screamed. "All of this, for what? A boy?!"

She shook her head, "You made me do this!"

While Kat slumped over on the ground, holding her wrist, Sam and Tory proceeded to fight to the end. After punches, swings, and other martial art moves unseen by Kat, Miguel and Robby rushed to their girlfriends aid.

"Stay down!" Miguel shouted.

Kat gazed up at Miguel and Robby-finding the harrowing sight of Robby kicking Miguel from the edge of the second floor. She watched with tears building in her eyes as Miguel swung and kick through the air, trying to find something to latch onto, until he landed on the railing of the stairs, back first.

"Miguel, no!" Tory screamed, as everyone watched Miguel plummet onto the cold, solid ground.

Upon seeing Miguel lying motionless at the bottom of the staircase, the once burning sensation of Kat's freshly slit wrist no longer hurt. Nothing compared to the breaking heart that abruptly stopped beating in her chest. First, Darrell, and now, Miguel. Kat couldn't save either of them, she was a failure as a sister, a friend, and a daughter. Nothing mattered anymore.

Kat removed her grasp from her wrist and let the blood ooze out, her hands and shirt remained covered in blood stains, but she didn't care. All she could do was walk slowly downstairs to find Miguel.

"M-Miguel," Kat croaked, bending down to his level. She checked his pulse to find he was still alive, but immersed in a deep slumber. "Please, wakeup. I'm so sorry. This is my fault," she sobbed relentlessly while slumped over Miguel's unconscious body.

Like Miguel, Kat found herself simmering into a deep, dark slumber. Her eyes began to weigh heavily-like a blurry filter, with her breathing becoming scarce, Kat felt herself drifting away, much like the day she lost her brother Darrell.

The familiar calling of a male voice rang out in Kat's ears, being the last thing she heard before she laid limp, still holding onto Miguel.

Everything stopped. Looking around, there was nothing. A black, blank slate without furniture, and the essence of an uncanny scent. The ground was covered in black, crunchy leaves, and Kat held her breath while furthering down a dark, lonely path.

"You can't save everyone, Kat." A woman's voice called out from the darkness.

Kat recognized it to be her mom's, or an imitation of some sort. She coarsely yelled back, "Mom? Is that you!"

Nothing. The only thing in her path was silence and a pitch black void. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping to awake from this nightmare.

Again, nothing happened. "Fuck," she mumbled.

Then, without warning, a body fell from above and slammed face down on the ground. Kat couldn't tell who it was, nor did she want to know. The only thing she could do was scream for help, but nobody was there. She ran towards the solid black walls and dove her fists into the reinforced structure.

It was hopeless. Kat continued to scream at the top of her lungs while pounding on the walls with every ounce of strength she had. "Get me out of here," she screamed.

Then, a bright light enveloped Kat, and with nothing left, her eyes sprung open as she caught her breath. She rubbed her eyes with a sigh and looked longingly at the light illuminating the window.

She scanned her eyes over every little thing in the room. First, Kat took note of her wrist wrapped in gauze and the unpleasant smell of hospital food that was laid out on her nightstand. Moving her gaze, she found Hawk sitting in the corner with his head buried in his hands.

"Eli?" Kat croaked.

Hawk gasped and ran to Kat's side. "Yeah, it's me." He began cupping her face with his callous hands.

"Did it really happen? Is Miguel-"

He didn't say anything, only nodding with reluctance.

Kat couldn't move, think, or speak. She laid her head back and sobbed quietly to herself. "It's my fault, Eli," she whimpered, her eyes pouring tears.

"Don't say that! It's that slut Sam's fault. If it wasn't for her, we wouldn't be in this mess."

She shook her head. "No, I could have stopped this. I failed Darrell, and now I failed Miguel. I can't save the people I love."

Hawk licked the rim of his lips, taking a deep breath. "Kat, stop blaming yourself for things that are out of your control! You can't save everyone...."

"What if I could, Eli? It should've been me. Miguel is a good person with a good heart, he doesn't deserve what happened to him!" Kat rubbed her face.

Grunting with frustration, Hawk moved to the edge of Kay's hospital bed. "Look at me," he demanded, holding her face in his hands, "it's not your responsibility to worry about others."

Kat held back tears, her voice quivered as she asked, "What happened to Miguel? Is he okay?"

Hawk scowled at Miguel's name, shaking his head. "Miguel is in a coma. He's fighting for his life right now."

"And Robby?"

Hawk hardened his face, looking through the hospital window and away from Kat. "That little bastard fled the cops. He's gone."

"This is a fucking mess..."

Clearing his throat, Hawk remarked, "Uh, Kat. I almost forgot, but your mom called about an hour ago. She's on her way from LAX airport."

"What?!" Kat shrieked. "Does that mean..."

The hospital door swung open, revealing Ali, Kat's mom. With a tightly knit wool sweater and jeans, Ali hadn't changed since the last time Kat saw her-over two years ago.

"KitKat!" Ali exclaimed, running towards Kat with a concerned expression. "Oh my god, baby...."

Kat shrugged her off, "yeah, yeah, it's fine."