❝ are sleepovers normally this... weird? ❞

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THE THIRASAWATS HAD BEEN INVITED TO CARMEN'S GENDER REVEAL PARTY.

The twins were helping with the setup, placing plates down on the table. Jintara stood in the kitchen talking with Carmen and Amanda, while Kiet was in the living room with Daniel and Johnny. Achara could not help but smile as she watched Tory and Sam working together to carry a floral arrangement.

"That's still so weird," Decha spoke as the two girls left the room.

"What?" Achara asked as she placed a plastic fork down on the table.

"Tory and Sam getting along," Decha responded. "They've been at each other's throats since they met and then fought over you. Now you're all friends? It's weird."

Achara nodded her head. "Oh. I totally agree with you on that, but they aren't trying to kill each other anymore, so I'll take weird over that any day."

"True," Decha agreed, placing the last plate down on the table and then turning to look at Achara. "And how are you and Sam? Tory's really okay with you dating her?"

"Yeah," Achara nodded. "Tory's with Robby now, and she said she hasn't had feelings for me since she started dating him. She's been our biggest supporter other than Miguel."

"That's good," Decha responded. "Weird, but good."

"Hey, Mrs. LaRusso!" Chae called out from where she
stood in front of the refrigerator. "The cannolis aren't in here."

The twins turned their heads at the sound of Chae's voice. Amanda had asked her to get the cannolis out of the fridge. Amanda turned around and walked over to the fridge, and Chae stepped out of the way to let her look inside.

"Anthony, get down here!" Amanda yelled and then turned to Carmen and Jintara. "That little shit ate every last cannoli."

"Sorry, Amanda-san," Chozen said as he walked up to her. "Had midnight snack."

"You ate a dozen cannolis?" Amanda questioned.

"They were mini," Chozen answered. "Very small. Uh, bite-sized."

"Yeah, I know what mini is," Amanda responded. "You know what, just... take this to the living room."

Amanda handed him a tray of bottles. Chozen smiled at her as he grabbed the rant and turned.

Chae crossed her arms and glared at him as he walked away. She had spent almost the entire evening helping Amanda make those. Cooking was never something that Chae had gotten the opportunity to do with her mother, so she was always helping Amanda out with cooking when she had the chance. Amanda was always more than happy and willing to teach Chae how to cook. Neither Sam nor Anthony was fond of helping her cook, so it helped Chae bond with Amanda more.

"Feel free to keep walking from there," Amanda said under her breath.

"We worked hard on those," Chae huffed.

Amanda turned to look at her. "I know, Chae. I know."

Chae sighed as Carmen and Jintara approached them. She joined the other teens, leaning up against the kitchen counter. The sound of a loud explosion from the living room caused everyone in the kitchen to stop what they were doing and turn their heads toward the noise.

Johnny came sauntering in, his shirt covered with pink powder. Chae's jaw dropped slightly before she started to shake her head, looking down at the ground. Achara and Decha glanced between Miguel and Robby, looking at their reactions.

Carmen gasped as she walked up to Johnny. "The package came early."

"Guess it's a girl," Johnny shrugged.

Carmen chucked, her voice cracking as she teared up from joy. "I can't wait to meet her." She pulled Johnny into a hug. "And for her to meet her dad."

Miguel and Robby started walking over to them. They all gathered around, giving Carmen and Johnny

"I'm a girl dad," Johnny beamed happily before he turned to Miguel and Robby. "You're a girl brother."

Johnny and Robby gave each other a high five. The rest of the group all gathered around, giving Carmen and Johnny congratulations and sharing their excitement.

"Where's Daniel?" Amanda questioned.

"And Kiet?" Jintara asked.

"Oh, yeah, uh..." Johnny responded as he turned to face the living room.

Daniel slowly walked into the kitchen, carrying the box in his hand. His entire face and his shirt were painted pink. Kiet walked in behind him, the entire left side of his face and his shirt sporting the same hue. Achara covered her mouth with her hand, trying not to laugh. She turned to look at Decha, who was doing the exact same thing.

Suddenly, everyone in the room erupted into a fit of laughter as they stared at the two men.

Johnny chuckled. "I told them not to move."

Daniel sighed before smiling. "I'm too old for this shit."

Kiet nodded his head in agreement before he joined in with the laughter. Achara and Decha couldn't help but smile at him. The man standing in front of them painted pink was so different from the father that they had once known. They were still not used to the sound of their father's laugh. The old Kiet would have never laughed at the situation, let alone been a guest at the party. He had come a long way, and they were both beyond thankful.

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Achara stood between Miguel and Robby. The three of them were watching Sam and Tory fight. Achara tilted her head to the side, her eyebrows furrowed together in confusion from what she was witnessing. They were barely even fighting with each other, and quite frankly, it was hard to watch.

"Your girlfriends are broken," Devon said to Achara and Robby as she approached them. "What the hell did you guys do?"

"We didn't do anything," Robby told her. "They're just friends now."

"Yeah, they went from war to Cold War to peace," Miguel added.

"Yeah," Devon scoffed. "Piece of crap fighting."

Achara nodded. "I'm glad they're getting along now, but this..." Achara whistled. "This is painful to watch."

Devon nodded her head in agreement before she walked away and approached Sensei Lawrence. Achara sighed as she watched Sam and Tory do their reverse punches like Johnny instructed them to.

Achara sighed, shaking her head. "I cannot watch this anymore."

She turned on her heels and walked across the backyard. She stood next to Decha, who was gathered in a circle with Chae, Hawk, Kenny, Chris, and Nate.

"All right, tomorrow's the big day," Hawk announced. "Finally going to find out which country's hosting the Sekai Taikai."

"Man, Germany would be cool," Kenny said with a smile. "My dad's getting stationed there next month."

"Oh, sick," Hawk replied.

"My money's on Taiwan," Chris chimed in. "Gonna get my Din Tai Fung on."

"Alai?" Achara wuwtined.

"There's a Din Tai Fung in Glendale," Nathaniel told Chris.

Chris's eyebrows furrowed together. "Word?"

Decha rolled his eyes at him. "I think it'd be cool if it were in Thailand. It's been a while since Chara and I have been there."

Achara nodded in agreement. "We haven't been in years. Since we were what, eleven? Twelve?"

"Yeah," Decha responded. "Somewhere around there."

Devon joined the group, smiling at the twins as she stood next to Chae. Decha smiled back at her as Achara gave her a small wave. Devon turned her head toward Chae and smiled at her. Chae greeted her with a small hello before she smiled.

"Lee!" Johnny's voice sounded through the dojo, causing their heads to turn. "Call your dad. Tell him you're having people over tonight."

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Achara, Chae, Sam, and Tory stood on the front porch of the Lee residence. Devon had told them all to pack a bag and what time to arrive. Johnny had told them that they were going to be doing some extra training. Achara was slightly confused by what was happening and why they were meeting at Devon's.

Sam rang the doorbell, and a few seconds later, the door opened. Devon stood in front of them dressed in her pajamas as she grinned from ear to ear.

"You made it!" Devon beamed. "We're in the basement."

Chae furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "We're?"

Devon opened the door wider and let the four girls in. She ran toward the basement. The girls exchanged looks of confusion before they walked inside. Achara closed the door behind her and slipped her shoes off at the front door. She never walked into a house without taking her shoes off first. It was common practice, stemming from the Thai belief that it was both a sign of respect and a way to avoid bringing negative energy into the house.

Sam and Achara stepped down the stairs to the basement with Chae and Tory behind them. Their confusion only deepened when they saw Johnny standing in the basement. Pink streamers and balloons that had previously been used for the gender reveal decorated the space.

"Welcome to Miyagi-Do After Dark," Johnny announced, greeting them as they stopped on the stairs.

Achara cringed.

"I don't think you should call it that," Sam told him.

"Miyagi-Do Nights?" Johnny asked.

Sam shook her head. "No."

"Dark Nights?"

Achara was the one to shake her head. "No."

"Wait. Is this a slumber party?" Tory questioned.

Devon entered the room with a huge smile on her face as she carried a box of nail polish. "I've never had one before."

"Me too," Chae said. "I never had friends that are girls."

Devon continued smiling. "I didn't know what color nail polish you guys like, so I just got them all."

"I figured since you're all friends now, we can have a girls' night," Johnny explained to them.

"With you?" Tory asked, skepticism in her voice.

"Hell yeah," Johnny replied. "I'm a girl dad now. I bought cookies and tampons and everything. All right. Come on inside."

Achara tilted her head to the side, staring at him with her eyebrows scrunched together.

"Grab a sleeping bag," Johnny told them as they stepped down the stairs. "The Mr. T one's mine."

The girls stared at him for a brief moment before they stepped further into the basement.

Chae leaned closer to Achara's ear. "Who is Mr. T?"

"An actor," Achara told her. "He was in Rocky III."

Chae looked even more confused. She didn't watch very many movies growing up. Her mother was always more concerned with training than watching movies.

"It's a movie series about a boxer named Rocky Balboa," Achara explained. "They're some of Sensei Lawrence's favorite movies."

Chae nodded her head slowly. She still was not sure of what Rocky was. She made a mental note to watch them at a later date. They put their bags down and took a seat on the couch. Chae sat awkwardly with her hands in her lap, unsure of what she was supposed to be doing. She was rowing in unfamiliar waters. The entire concept of a sleepover was completely uncharted territory.

"Who's ready to have some fun?" Johnny asked, catching the attention of the girls.

He inserted a cassette tape labeled "Slumber Party Badass Mix" into the radio. The song Girls Just Want to Have Fun by Cyndi Lauper began playing through the speakers, filling the space.

"Let's paint each other's nails!" Devon shrieked, jumping up and down with excitement.

Devon placed the nail polish down on the table. Achara grabbed Chae's hand and pulled her up from the couch. She ushered her over to the table where the other girls were sitting. Chae took a seat next to Tory as it was the only other chair available.

"Everyone pick a color," Devon told them as she picked up a bottle of red polish.

Achara immediately went for black. It was always her first choice. She already had nail polish on, but it was chipped in various places. As Sam and Tory picked out their colors, Chae just stared blankly at all of the different colors. Sam turned her head toward her and then down at the bin of nail polish. She reached for a dark purple and held it out in front of Chae.

"I think this color would look great on you," Sam told her. "Don't you think so, guys?"

Tory and Devon nodded their heads. Chae looked at Achara, waiting for a confirmation.

Achara smiled at her and nodded. "Definitely."

They began painting each other's nails. While Achara painted Devon's nails, Sam painted Tory's. Chae tried to paint her own nails but was failing miserably. Tory turned to look at her when Sam was finished with her nails and shook her head at her.

"Hey, Chae," Tory said, causing Chae to look up. "I'll help you as soon as my nails are dry, okay?"

Chae nodded her head. "Oh, thank you."

"No problem," Tory replied.

Tory stayed true to her word. The second that her nails were dry, she grabbed the bottle of dark purple nail polish and began to paint Chae's nails.

Achara finished Devon's nails. Devon waved her hands in the air to make the nail polish dry quicker. Before she painted Achara's nails, she removed the old polish with nail polish remover. Tory painted Sam's nails when she was finished with Chae's.

When all five of the girls had their nails painted, Johnny had them move to the couch. Devon passed out white face masks to each of them as Johnny placed two cucumbers in their hands. Chae stared down at the items in her hands, unsure of what she was supposed to do with them. It was not until she saw Sam and Tory place the face mask on their faces and the cucumbers on their eyes that she understood. She leaned her head back against the couch and gently laid the white mask on her face before closing her eyes and putting the slices of cucumber on her closed eyelids.

Achara looked down at the white mask in her hands. She hated how slimy it felt, and not to mention, she absolutely hates cucumbers. There was no way she was going to put them on her eyes.

"Tiredsarat, what is the problem?" Johnny asked her.

"I don't like cucumbers, and this mask is all slimy and weird," Achara replied, holding the face mask up in the air with her pointer finger and thumb.

"Just put the mask on," Johnny told her.

Achara shook her head. "No, thank you."

Johnny rolled his eyes and grabbed the face mask out of her hand. He held it over her face and then dropped it. Achara cringed as she felt the coldness and sliminess of the mask touch her skin. She peeled it off her face and tossed it, cringing as it landed on the floor beside the coffee table.

"Could you at least close your eyes and relax?" Johnny asked. "You're disturbing everyone else."

Achara turned her head to either side, looking at the other girls. They all had their heads back with the white mask covering their faces, cucumbers on their eyes. They didn't look bothered at all.

Achara sighed as she rolled her eyes. She leaned her head back against the couch and stared up at the ceiling before she closed her eyes.

...

Sam and Tory stood across from each other, holding pillows in their hands. Achara looked back and forth at Chae and Devon, who stood in front of her. The three of them held pillows of their own.

"Ready?" Johnny asked, holding his arm out in front of Sam and Tory before pulling it up. "Fight!"

Achara started swinging her pillow at the two girls, causing Chae to laugh when it hit her in the shoulder. She swung her pillow toward Achara, who smiled at her and giggled as she kept swinging. Devon and Chae both swung their pillows at the same time, hitting Achara one after the other. She got in a few hits of her own before they started hitting at the same time repeatedly. Achara kept laughing as she turned to look at Sam.

The two girls exchanged a smile before Sam turned her head to Tory. Sam and Tory nodded at each other before they came to Achara's aide. Sam was hitting Devon while Tory was hitting Chae. They were all laughing and giggling as they hit each other with their pillows, causing feathers to fly all around them.

"Who knew hitting people with pillows could be so fun?" Chae asked.

Devon laughed. "I know, right?"

Achara started swinging her pillow at Sam, and she immediately swung back. Sam glanced at the other girls, and before Achara knew it, they were all swinging their pillows at her all at once.

"Hey!" Achara giggled. "That's not fair!"

Their laughter echoed throughout the basement as Achara tried to back away and dodge their pillows while swinging her pillow at them.

...

The five girls plus Johnny were gathered around the coffee table with an Ouija board in front of them. Achara stared down at it. Her mother had always told her not to mess around with one, but against her mother's words and her better judgment, Achara placed her fingers on the board.

"All right, who wants to ask the first question?" Johnny asked as he looked around at the girls.

"I will!" Devon volunteered.

Johnny nodded at her as Devon started to think of a question.

"Will Mitch ever win the All Valley?" Devon asked.

Achara let out a small laugh.

"Who the hell is Mitch?" Johnny questioned, glancing around the table.

"Penis Breath," Tory clarified.

Johnny instantly pushed the planchette toward the word 'no' without hesitation. "Nope."

Chae stared at him in confusion. "I do not think you are supposed to move it yourself."

"Next question," Johnny ignored her. "Does Tory want Sam to fall down a flight of stairs, breaking every single bone in her little body?"

The girls all looked up at him.

"What?" Tory asked.

Achara tilted her head to the side, her eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "Why would you ask that?"

Johnny shrugged. "Well, let's see what it says."

Johnny started moving the planchette towards 'yes' as Tory fought back, trying to push it in the opposite direction. Johnny placed his other hand on the planchette and forcefully pulled it toward 'yes.'

Johnny sighed. "There it is. That's ugly."

Achara rolled her eyes at him as Tory turned to look at Sam, and the two girls exchanged a look.

"You are still moving it," Chae commented.

"If Sam could describe Tory in one word, what would that word be?" Johnny questioned, ignoring her once again.

They all glanced down at the board. Johnny started to push the planchette again.

He called out the letters as the planchette slid across the board. "B-I-T..."

Sam and Tory both rolled their eyes as they scoffed and got up from the table.

"What?" Johnny asked. "It could've said bitching."

Devon sighed, placing her head in her hands. Achara rolled her eyes as she stood up from her chair and joined Sam and Tory on the couch.

Chae looked down at the board, keeping her fingers on it. She leaned in closer to the board and whispered, "Goodbye, spirits. Have a nice night."

She leaned back and took her fingers off the board. Johnny and Devon were both staring at her.

Chae darted her eyes back and forth between them. "What? You are supposed to say goodbye, no?"

She scooted her chair out and then pushed it back in before she turned on her heels. She walked over to the couch and took a seat next to Achara.

"Are sleepovers normally this... weird?" Chae asked.

Achara shook her head. "No. No, they are not."

"Okay," Chae nodded her head as she leaned in closer to whisper in Achara's ear. "Also, is it just me or is Sensei Lawrence trying to make Sam and Tory fight?"

"Oh, he most definitely is," Achara whispered back.

"For why?" Chae asked.

Achara shrugged. She turned her head to glance at the corner where Johnny stood, talking to Devon. She didn't know what was going on, but she had a good feeling that whatever it was, Devon was in on it.

— EMILIA'S NOTES

this chapter was actually kind of hard to write and i don't know why?

but anyway, next chapter will continue with the sleepover & i was thinking of maybe adding a boys hang out with decha, demetri, hawk, miguel, and robby?

alternative chapter title: johnny 'i'm a girl dad now'
lawrence