BURNING PILE » MIGUEL DIAZ

𝟬𝟰𝟳 sometimes darkness is a prison

chapter forty-seven ; sometimes darkness is a prison
[ season 5, episode 4 ]

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"Let's all give it up, the champ is in the house," Silver introduced as she entered the dojo alongside her sister and father.

Being here—it made her sick. And Nadia wasn't sure she'd ever make it out. Terry telling her that he planned to make her the face of Cobra Kai felt more like a threat than it did a promise.

She wasn't sure if her father would ever let her leave. It didn't help that Miguel had been asking if they could talk, and she'd been ignoring him completely. Him constantly trying with her only made her feelings for him deeper, which reminded her exactly why she was pushing him away in the first place.

Nadia missed him so much. His hair, his lips, his eyes, his smile. All she had to look at was pictures, and they were no consolation. Her lock screen was a picture of them the day Johnny made them get pictures of himself for Ali. Miguel held the phone while she held Mr. Mercy, a genuine smile on her face. The picture haunted her, but she couldn't bring herself to change it.

She still hadn't made amends with her sister. There was a weird tension between them, and Nadia knew it was because her dad had turned their bond into some sort of competition for karate, and Nadia was winning. Kiara used it to push her, only making her fall further and further off the deep end. Nadia could see she was hurting as a result of it, but every time she'd try to talk to Kiara, she'd get shut out.

The only good thing that had changed was her teammates opinions on her. Granted, there was many new faces that hadn't formed official thoughts on her, the ones who had been there gained a genuine respect and, for some, a genuine liking for her.

Val was not included in that, obviously.

Practice had gone well. It seemed her love for Miguel was not hindering her, but it was strengthening her. Both her dad and Silver noticed this.

Nadia leaned on the wall near the exit, wondering if she should wait on her dad or walk around the area to find something to eat or distract herself.

"You okay?"

Nadia looked up to see Tory Nichols staring at her with. . . genuine concern?

The Hayworthe looked at her for some time before speaking, "Yeah. Dumb boy stuff."

She couldn't tell if Tory was trying to be friendly or trying to start something, but she hoped it wasn't the latter. She didn't really want it to be the first option either, to be frank. She wasn't sure if they were civil or beyond that anymore.