My Cobra Guy

Episode Thirty

Daniel's heart couldn't stop racing, his unease increasing with each passing second. Terry Silver's face had stopped him cold. He had no doubt that man would've killed him when he was a teen, and he had no reason to believe Silver's disposition had changed at all. The guy was a blood-thirsty maniac.

"It's gonna be okay," Johnny said, coming up behind him.

No, it isn't going to be. Terry Silver is involved in your son's life now.

"We gotta get Robby away from them," Daniel said grimly. "I don't know how. And we have to keep our own students safe. Can't his mom get through to him?"

"I can try, but she's not his favorite person either. He respects her about as much as he does me," Johnny said.

"You didn't get away from Kreese until he almost killed you," Daniel said, remembering when his proud rival's life had almost been ended by someone he'd trusted. In a parking lot. In front of all his friends.

"Hey, I was a dumb kid. And, so's Robby..."

"Think about it. Maybe you'll remember something that could help us. Those things Silver taught me changed me, and not in good ways." He'd become more aggressive and violent. The techniques he was taught were vicious and showed no mercy.

And, dammit, Daniel was responsible for Robby, too. Robby had trusted him. Johnny stepped close and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, let's just mull it over while we unpack the truck, okay?" The blonde gave him a grim smile. Johnny was trying to comfort him, in his own way, even though Johnny had numerous problems of his own.

Daniel had seen the hospital bill, saw that Johnny had no insurance. There was no way Johnny could afford it. Not to mention, the accident, no matter what Johnny said, was Daniel's fault. And so, Daniel would pay this. If he'd ever thought he'd be covering medical expenses for Johnny Lawrence...

He wondered if Johnny was relieved to know he didn't have ED.

Now it was Daniel's turn to look away and blush. He had the advantage of being slightly shorter; it was much easier to hide his face. Johnny hadn't been able to hide anything last night when Daniel had been straddling him. That man seemed to be working fine. Except, why did Daniel have that effect on him? Was it just because of the sensation of a body, any body, atop him?

But Johnny had been behaving strangely earlier outside of the van; had repeatedly turned away from him. No, there is no way Johnny is having those kinds of reactions because of me.

"Daniel?" Johnny prompted, still leaning over his shoulder. "Let's unpack the truck, and maybe we can grab a couple brews later." He probably thought Daniel had gone quiet over Silver.

"Yeah, we got lotsa boxes to bring in," Daniel said with a smile, then immediately sighed. "You need to talk to Regina."

"Me?" Johnny asked, hauling several boxes labeled "Clothes" from the back of the truck.

"You're the one she looks up to the most," Daniel replied, starting into the house with his own stack of three boxes, most of them containing trophies and old karate memorabilia. "I would've taken her comment about her two dads as a compliment."

Johnny didn't say much else as they carried boxes into Miyagi-Do. By midafternoon, Johnny's brow was glossy with sweat, and the truck had only a few boxes remaining. Throughout the task, Johnny seemed to avoid Daniel, timing it just so he was leaving as Daniel was entering. However, a few times, Johnny had walked in as Daniel bent over boxes to place them in a free area of the sitting room. On these occasions, Johnny started muttering under his breath. At first, Daniel couldn't figure out what he was saying, but after the third time, it became clear. Matt Foley.

Daniel took a moment to go to the kitchen, lean against the counter with a glass of cold water, and his phone. Why was Johnny persistently muttering a stranger's name? Well, he was a stranger to Daniel at least. Was this someone Johnny had recently become close to? Daniel wasn't sure why it irritated him, but shock and confusion overcame annoyance as soon as he searched "Matt Foley" in his browser.

He hid a chuckle. Look at this clown. I have nothing to worry about. What am I worried about? Matt Foley's appearance didn't answer why Johnny was repeatedly saying the name. He clicked on the man's social media profile, and beneath his picture were the words "Motivational Speaker." He suppressed another laugh. Johnny was one of the last people he'd expect to listen to motivational speakers. But, Johnny had been doing his best to try to change. Matt Foley was probably part of it.

Daniel opened the "Info" tab on the account, to see that Matt Foley specialized in "helping people to make better life choices." That sounded like it could be a good idea for Johnny. He narrowed his eyes as he read the bulleted "Qualifications" list, which included, "divorced three times," "addicted to whiskey," "many other terrible life choices," and "lives in a van down by the river." So, this guy obviously had a sense of humor, which Johnny could potentially find appealing.

Daniel clicked on Matt's mutual friend list, to see if he and Johnny were friends, but Daniel and Matt had no mutual friends. Right, he and Johnny weren't even friends on social media. On a whim, he brought up Johnny's page, curious what kinds of things he might write about. There wasn't much to see as far as text. Back when he'd been running the Cobra Kai, he'd posted updates about their events. And then, there were photos, lots of photos - Johnny, coaching the kids at the last All Valley Tournament, Johnny petting various dogs, and Johnny posing in a denim jacket in front of angel wings that'd been painted on a wall.

Daniel made one of those bigger, where Johnny had his arms outstretched and his head tilted backward. How was Johnny still so photogenic after all this time? The camera loved him. Maybe Daniel should take some more pictures of him for Miyagi-Do; Johnny had become just as much a face of the dojo as Daniel.

So why shouldn't the two be online friends? He hit the button to send a request.