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CHAPTER TWELVE
"when sensei cares"
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(mercy)

SHIRA WASN'T HAPPY. 

When Jules showed up late at night, blood leaking down her face, hanging onto Miguel like a lifeline, she swore loudly in Yiddish and directed her inside. Her first instinct was that she was drunk, but after hearing from the Diaz boy that she had sustained multiple head injuries in the same day, she was given a whole new thing to be angry about. 

She inspected the cut, determined that it wouldn't need stitches, and rinsed it with rubbing alcohol, a sensation that did not feel too good. She then interrogated her daughter for a good half an hour, only letting her go to sleep when she passed out on the couch. 

Jules didn't have a good sleep. The pounding in her head didn't diminish even after she took extra-strength medication, and she felt like she was going to throw up. Come morning, she was still off her balance, but was determined to at least go one round in the tornament. 

 Shira was having different thoughts. 

 "I hope you're not wearing that." She said, watching as Jules entered the kitchen, her gi held tight in her arms. She glanced up from her coffee, noticing how tired her daughter looked- despite her best efforts to cover it up with foundation. "Mahava, do you seriously think I'm gonna let you go fight after getting hit in the head? Concussions are serious, aggravate it and you might not be able to fight ever again." 

 "I feel fine." Jules lied, even smiling to try and prove her point. It came out as more of a grimace, and Shira cocked an eyebrow. 

 "Yeah, you look fine." She walked over, brushing her hair aside to see the bandage that had been placed on her forehead the previous night. "Come here, we're changing that bandage." 

 Jules begrugedly followed, jumping up to sit on the counter as Shira delicately peeled the bandage back. Jules grimaced at the stinging sensation, but other than that managed to keep a straight face as Shira dabbed it with a paper towel doused in rubbing alcohol. "Remind me again what happened?" 

 "I swear to God that I wasn't drinking." She held up her right hand, "Hand on the Tanakh, I wasn't drinking." 

 "I believe you." Shira pursed her lips, "why did you come back soaking wet?" 

 "Oh, that?" Jules blushed, "I pushed Miguel into the ocean, it's a long story." 

 The woman hummed, pressing a new bandage onto the skin. "Okay, well how did this happen? Did you get into another fight?"  

 "I already told you, I fell." 

"Well then you're obviously a lot less graceful than I thought." Shira patted Jules's shoulder, softening her tone. "If something is going on, you can tell me." 

"There's not, Mom, really." Jules hopped down, shooting her mother what she hoped came off as an innocent grin. "The tornament starts soon, we should go." 

 "Only if you promise me one thing-" she held out her pinky, something she used to do when Jules was a little kid to make sure she would keep her promise. "If your head starts bothering you, you stop. Immediately." 

 Jules sighed, lacing their pinkies together. "Promise." 

 "Good," Shira clapped her hands, rising to her feet. "Then I think we have somewhere to be."

 ***

"YOU LOOK LIKE shit." 

 Johnny glanced over his shoulder as the two walked towards the stadium where the All-Valley would be held. She caught sight of him in the parking lot, and wondered why he was late - given the fact that he didn't have an injury to be used as an excuse.  

 In all fairness, it was accurate... the Lawrence man did look like shit. He had bags under his eyes, and his clothes were wrinkled. He gave her a quick once-over, taking note of her bandaged forehead and tired face. He scowled. "So do you. What, did you hit yourself with your drum sticks?" 

 Jules snorted, "sure, let's go with that. What's your excuse?"

 "Rough night." He said, averting his gaze as he shoved his car keys into his pockets. Jules pursed her lips. 

"My friend has Asprin if you want some." 

 "I don't need Asprin from your nerdy friends," Johnny crossed his arms. "I hope you didn't hurt youself too bad, there's this really cocky kid at another dojo whose ass I need you to kick."

 Jules cocked an eyebrow, "why do I have to kick his ass?" 

 "Because, since I have girls in Cobra Kai now, I have to flaunt it." He shot her a 'duh' look. "And as much as Robinson's improving, she doesn't have the same psycho attitude as you." 

 In a weird way, that was a nice compliment. Jules found herself smiling, but quickly forced a poker face when Johnny glanced over at her. "Fine, but my mom says that if my head hurts I have to stop." 

 "Please, everyone knows that concussions are made up, you'll be fine." 

 The two walked through the doors to the stadium, Jules quickly catching sight of their group due to Hawk's exuberant hairstyle. She walked up behind him, whacking him once on the back of the head and crossing her arms. "Hey, nerds." She greeted, grinning at Aisha as she stopped to stand next to Miguel. "I didn't miss anything important, did I?" 

 Johnny walked right into the middle of the circle, gesturing for them to come closer. Not before turning to Jules, "hey, Monroe!" 

 "What's up, Greasy Joe?" 

 Johnny rolled his eyes, "take out your earrings, they're not allowed on the mat. And try to angle your hair so it covers the bandage, we don't want some doctor trying to sue us, alright?" 

 "Got it," Jules immediately began taking out her earrings, starting with her helix piercings, and then moving to her regular ones. As she did this, Johnny began to talk. 

 "You've all learned to strike first, to be aggressive... to not be losers." The man began, pacing around the circle in order to make eye contact with everyone separately. "I taught you to strike hard, to put every ounce of your power behind everything you do... but I haven't taught you the third rule of Cobra Kai." 

 Jules took off her bracelets next, holding all of her jewellery in her palms as Johnny continued his speech. "No mercy. The older you get, the more you're gonna learn that life isn't fair. You wake up one morning feeling great... then life throws a spinning heel kick to your balls, and takes a big steaming shit in your mouth." 

 Jules snickered at that, but she was the only one brave enough to. Everyone else was watching their Sensei with confused expressions on his face as he delivered the most depressing pep-talk in the history of any sport. 

 "You get an F on a test," Johnny continued, "you get suspended, you fall in love with a girl and another guy steals her away..." he pointed to Jules, "or you crack open your head the day before your competition." 

 "I would really appreciate it if you would leave me out of this."

 Johnny ignored her. "Or your car gets set on fire." 

 Miguel glanced at her from the corner of his eye and Jules shrugged, lowering her voice to a whisper, "it actually wasn't me, I don't know what he's talking about." 

"Just when you think everything's going good, it all falls apart! That's how it goes." 

 "Excuse me, Sensei?" Jules began, raising her hand and successfully gaining the group's attention. She pursed her lips, "is there a point to this other than to depress us?" 

"Yes there is, Freddie Mercury."

 "I don't even dress like-" 

 "Life shows no mercy!" Johnny cut her off, "So neither do we. We do whatever it takes to keep our heads above water. We do whatever it takes to keep pushing forward. We do whatever it takes to win!" 

 Jules couldn't help but crack a smile at that, wiggling her eyebrows at Miguel. Doing whatever it takes to win doesn't sound half bad.

 "Remember who you are. You're badass! You don't give a shit! You're Cobra Kai." 

 "Whoo!" Jules pumped her fist, earning a confused look from her peers. She rolled her eyes, "what? I can be positive." 

 "Let's go down there and kick everyone's ass!"

 Miguel reached into his bag, pulling out a familiar white gi, and Johnny shook his head when he caught sight of it.

 "No... you're not wearing those." 

***

"MONROE! COME HERE!" 

"Before you say anything, I did not light your car on fire." 

 "What? No-" Johnny shook his head as Jules, adorned in her new Cobra Kai gi, brushed her hair away from her face. "I'm here to say that I agree with your mom." 

 Jules blinked, unsure of what to say to that statement. The last time Johnny Lawrence and Shira Monroe agreed on something, it was that the other is a pain in the ass. She didn't say that out loud, she just put her cold palm against her aching forehead and frowned. "Oh?" 

 "We're taking it round by round, if your head hurts, I'm benching you." he crossed his arms indignantly. "And believe me, I'll be able to tell if you're lying. I've been lying about injuries since before you were born." 

 "That's a weird flex, but okay." Jules almost laughed. The prospect of Johnny Lawrence actually caring about her wellbeing was nothing short of hilarious, especially considering the fact that he taught her how to fight people for a living. Still, after weeks of training, she would admit; she didn't find him as insufferable as before. 

 The blond shot her a look, "what's with the dumb smile?"  

 "Nothing, Sensei." She shook her head. She had multiple jokes she could shoot at him, but decided against it at the last second, settling with removing her hand from her head and tilting her chin up. "But first I have to beat up that kid you were telling me about." 

 The ghost of a smile dusted over Johnny's face. "Deal." 

 As she was walking back over to her group, she caught sight of a familiar face in the audience, and felt her heart drop. Sam LaRusso stared at her, an unreadable expression on her face as they made eye contact. Guilt bloomed in Jules' chest as she remembered what she said to her the night before. She didn't mean to be so harsh, but now that her head was clear, she was left to stare back at the past and watch the debris swirl in her tracks. 

 They held eye contact for a few seconds, before Jules remembered Sam's words and averted her gaze. She couldn't help but wonder if Sam meant what she said... did she really think that Jules screwed up all of her friendships? 

 More importantly: did she screw up theirs?

Amanda LaRusso rose her hand in greeting, and Jules waved back, before quickly turning to listen to Johnny's last minute (hopefully less depressing than the previous) pep talk. He gestured to the first person she would be fighting, a boy about double her size, with pale skin and curly brown hair. "He's big, but I'll bet my life savings that he's slow." 

 Jules widened her eyes, "you'll bet five dollars?" 

 "Shut up, I'm helping you." Johnny brushed her off, "make him loose his balance, he'll drop like sack of potatoes." 

 Jules nodded, rotating her shoulders as Johnny patted her head, "go get a win, kid."

 Jules nodded, before walking out onto the mat. Her head was still aching, but it was mostly cancelled out by her adrenaline as her opponant sized her up, a small smirk on his lips. She shot him a sarcastic grin in response, before taking her place and taking a deep breath.

"Bow to the ref," their referee ordered, and Jules complied, before turning to bow to the boy. 

 She took a half step forward, holding her fists out as she waited for the signal. When it was given, she darted forward, ducking under a punch and hitting her forearm into his chest. She could hear Johnny yelling something at her, but couldn't make out the words, as she dropped to the ground and swung her leg out, sweeping his legs out from under him and making his back hit the ground. 

 She could hear her teammates cheering as the ref called her point, feeling triumph bloom in her chest. The match went by quickly, Jules managing to score two more points, before bowing and turning to run back to her group.

 "Hell yeah!" Johnny cheered, holding his hand out for a high-five. Jules obliged, a grin on her face as she laughed breathlessly. 

 "Whoo!" Miguel cheered, leaning down so she could hug him, "that was awesome!" 

 The event passed in a blur. Jules could feel the pain in her head diminish, although she got more and more dizzy as the minutes ticked on. She narrowed her eyes at another boy, the sixth she had fought and the final before she made it to semi's, and took a deep breath. He was bigger than her, and had his eyes narrowed - not cocky like the others she had beat. 

 The whistle blew, and she immediately had to duck when he kicked at her, rolling over and rising to her feet, bouncing slightly and running forward, throwing a punch that he blocked, and then having to block a kick directed at her middle. 

She blew some hair from her face, grunting as he landed a hit to her stomach, making her stagger back. The world around her spun, and she found herself landing harshly on her back, even though the kick wasn't even that hard. 

 "Monroe!" She heard Johnny shout from the sidelines, and she rose a hand to signify that she was fine as she rose to her feet. She screwed her eyes shut for a moment, lightly shaking her head to try and rid herself of the vertigo, squaring her shoulders. 

 The whistle blew, and she held up her forearm to block a punch, kicking the boy in the stomach and lunging forward, ducking under a kick and spinning around to land a hit to his face, taking a half step back to roundhouse kick him in the chin, sending him falling to the ground. 

 She sniffed, rubbing her temple as the pressure behind her eyes increase. Two more rounds, she could get through two rounds. 

 This time, the boy hung back, waiting for her to make the first move. She did just that, throwing a punch and then ducking under his arm, hitting the back of his knees. He spun around, kicking out and hitting her thigh, making her stagger back a few steps, spinning around and kicking her leg out, landing a hit directly to his jaw. 

 She inhaled, swallowing. Just a few more rounds. 

 She blinked when her vision began to swim, forcefully rubbing her eyes. There was a time and place for being injured, this was not the time nor the place.

 "Come on," she muttered to herself, holding out her fists. 

 The next round seemed to go on forever. The two were going back and forth, neither able to land a solid hit without it being blocked by the other. Then, he lunged forward and she held out her hands, swatting his leg away. 

 A sudden roll of nausea hit her, and she grimaced, lifting a hand to her stomach, not fully able to understand her Sensei's shout of warning, before a foot hit her head, sending her sprawling to the ground. 

 Her head hit the mat with a dull thumping sound that resonated through her head and made her stomach even more upset. She coughed, curling her hand into a fist as she felt a hand prod her arm. 

 "Monroe?" The voice asked, sounding at first like it was spoken through water. Another second and her senses slammed back into her, the bright lights and loud voices piercing her consciousness and making her groan.  

 "Come on, Monroe, stand up." 

 She rose up to her knees, on hand on her head, the other cradling her stomach as Johnny helped her to her feet. The boy she was playing took a step forward, outstretching his hand. "Hey, are you alright?" 

 "Yeah, I'm -" she swallowed to try and make her hearing settle. "I'm fine." 

 "Can she continue?" The ref asked, and Jules straightened her back. "Yes, I -" 

 "Hell no," Johnny cut in, shaking his heads as Jules shot him an annoyed look. "She's done, see you later." 

 "What the hell?" Jules demanded, pulling her arm away and nearly falling over again as Johnny dragged her off of the mat. Her mouth felt unusually dry, and her eyes were heavy as if she was tired. She didn't even realize she was swaying until Johnny steadied her, leading her over to the side so she could lean against the wall. "I was -" she inhaled deeply, "I was fine." 

 "Yeah, that's what they all say," he crossed his arms, "right before they die." 

 "Who is 'they'?" 

"It doesn't matter!" Johnny barked, before lowering his voice when he caught the small wince emmitted from the girl. "I told you, you aren't getting brain damage or some shit just because you're such a hardass. If you don't sit down right now I swear to god I will call your mother!" 

 "Too late." 

 The two jumped in nearly perfect unison as Shira made herself known, her arms crossed and her eyes staring daggers into the two. Johnny immediately rolled her eyes as Jules nervously bit her lip, her mother walking over to put a hand to her head as if she was feeling for a fever. "Are you alright, Mahava?" 

 "I'm fine, Ma, it's just-" 

 "She pushed herself and nearly passed out." Johnny deadpanned, earning a sharp glare from the girl and pulling a face in response. "Don't be a bitch, I'm just-" 

 "Hey!" Shira turned to punch the man's shoulder, earning a shocked expression as his eyebrows shot up on his head. "Don't talk to my daughter that way, lunatic!" 

 Johnny sighed, rubbing his shoulder, "I guess I know where she gets it from, now." 

 "Come on," Shira ignored the quip, gesturing for her daughter to follow. Jules furrowed her eyebrows. 

 "Where are we going?" 

 "To the hospital," she dug around in her purse for her car keys, "concussions are serious, if you don't get it checked out you might never be able to do karate again..." she paused, before begrudgedly adding; "which would be a shame, especially since you're that good with your brain all messed up." 

 "Yeah, she's good." Johnny piped up, shooting the girl. "Even if she is the worst." 

 "You're the worst." Jules shot back, fighting to keep the smile from her lips. Johnny rolled his eyes. 

 "Whatever, get outta here before I call security." 

 And then Jules did smile. Because even if she didn't get to finish the tornament, and she may have ruined her friendship with Sam, and her relationship with Miguel was so confusing it made her head hurt... 

 At least she knew that her Sensei cared. 

A/N:

DONE PART ONE CAN I GET A HELL YEAH???

whew! i am honestly vibing right now, because i am so incredibly excited to write the next season! it is entering the era of romantic miliana (which is a ship name i thought of just now) and also the era of jules beating the shit out of tory!

also, let's take a minute to compare these pictures of young mila kunis and odeya because um:

they look so similar??? good casting by me lmao-

part two should be up tomorrow! i hope you guys are as excited as i am, and tell me any predictions you have for season two!

lots of love!