Battle Wounds

thirteen.

Harper stepped through the familiar gate of the Miyagi-Do dojo, a sigh escaping her lips as she realized that she was the first to arrive. In her rush to be on time, she was now too early and was left alone with thoughts that started to run rampant through her mind. It took everything in her to quiet her thoughts but even then a few trickled in. Whispering to her about how bad of an idea it was to start anything with Hawk.

What had started as self-defense training had changed into friendship. Now the friendship that never should have been had grown into something more.

The whole thing was a horribly bad idea.

If she was smart, she'd put an end to it right away but she didn't want to. She was selfish. She wanted to see where this could go despite the challenges they would face. After weeks of sneaking around, she was confident they'd somehow make it work. That it was worth the risks.

If it didn't end in a disaster first.

Please shut up, she thought with a sigh.

The sound of footsteps scattered her thoughts and she welcomed the happy distraction. Something to give her solace from her overthinking mind. That is until she saw who entered the backyard.

John Kreese strode into the backyard like he belonged there.

"What are you doing here?" Harper asked, instantly on the defensive. While they'd never met before, she'd heard enough stories to know who he was.

He regarded her with interest, the false smile never leaving his face. "I'm looking for Daniel LaRusso."

"He's not here. But I'll tell him you were looking for him."

"Oh, there's no need," Kreese said casually, stepping across the backyard until he stood before her. "I'll wait."

"Great," Harper muttered with a sigh.

"This will give us a chance to talk, Harper." Seeing the look of surprise on her face, he chuckled as he lit up a cigar. "Oh, I know all about you. It's really such a shame what you've been through," he said with a sad shake of his head. "In and out of foster homes your entire life, always looking for a happy ending that never comes."

Arms crossed over her chest, Harper leveled him with a glare that she doubted scared him. But she refused to show her fear and stood her ground.

"I'm sure being in the system made you resilient. Tough. And it made you fight for what's yours, right?" The words were more of a statement than a question. A point made to show that he knew who she was. "There's no doubt that juvie played a big part in your life. You were in there, what, two times already?"

It was a little unsettling how he knew so much but she had no doubt that most of it was by word of mouth. People liked to talk. Especially about a girl who didn't belong.

"What's your point?"

"My point," Kreese said as he puffed the cigar, blowing the smoke in her direction, "is that I think you'd be a perfect fit for Cobra Kai."

Harper let out a humorless laugh that was part cough due to the smoke.

"I'm serious, Harper. I've seen a few of your training sessions with Hawk, and you're really good. Impressively good." His smile widened at the look of surprise that crossed her face.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"But I think that you do. I know about your... friendship with Hawk. How long did you think you two could sneak around without me finding out?"

Harper refused to answer. Refused to acknowledge his suspicion because she had no doubt he'd use it against her.

"You can deny it all you want but we both know it's true." He puffed on his cigar, letting the seconds pass by dramatically. Blowing out the smoke, he fixed her with a look. "But the offer to have you join stands. We could use someone like you on the team. You know, I think you might be just as good or maybe even better than some of my students."