"THE SEKAI Taikai needs our final roster in three days. And now that we know who's going, it's time for us to name our male and female captains. The captains are not just the leaders of the team. They're the ones who will be fighting in the finals." Sensei LaRusso explained.

"Plus, they get to fight in live TV." Johnny added, "Who knows what comes after that? Wheaties boxes, chop-socky flicks, ZZ Top videos. The sky's the limit."

"You'll all get the glory if we win but, yes, the captains will be in the spotlight." Daniel nodded.

Johnny announced, "Tomorrow, Miguel and Robby will fight for male captain. And Sam, Belle, and Tory will fight for female captain."

***

"I'm staying for dinner at Tory's, by the way." Isabella said, as she walked through the kitchen towards the front door.

"Okay, don't be home too late." Carmen replied, kissing her on the forehead as Isabella opened the front door.

She met with Miguel, who was visibly upset; Isabella could almost sense it just by looking at him. Isabella asked curiously, "You okay?"

"I got deferred." Miguel sighed.

"Deferred?" Johnny asked, "What's deferred?"

"From Stanford," Miguel replied, "It means not yes."

"But it's not a no, right?" Carmen reassured, "They'll just review your application in the spring."

Isabella ruffled Miguel's hair before leaving her apartment and walking to Tory's; the girl was inside, making pasta. Isabella opened the door, which was left unlocked for her, saying hello to Tory with a kiss.

Isabella asked curiously, "Where's your brother?"

"He's staying over at his friends house," Tory replied, "So, it's just us... and Mom."

Isabella smiled, "Hey, I thought I was cooking. Your job is to sit down on the couch and relax."

"Oh yeah?" Tory chuckled, before leaving the kitchen and walking towards the couch.

Isabella grabbed the wooden spoon and did a taste test, before adding more spices to the boiling pot, "Do you have any garlic bread? I think pasta tastes better when you have garlic bread on the side of your plate. Miguel says that you can never have pasta without—"

"No," Tory muttered. Isabella turned around to look at the girl; her body frozen as she stared down the hallway, before she quickly ran to the end of it.

Isabella turned off the stove, before curiously following the girl. She froze, exactly where Tory was stood before, looking down the hallway to see a blonde woman being cradled by Tory. A sense of urgency washed over Isabella, forcing her to run towards them; she knelt down beside Tory, who was sobbing so loudly that Isabella couldn't hear her own thoughts.

"Mom!" Tory repeated over and over again, "Mom, wake up!"

Isabella's eyes swelled with tears, as she checked the pulse of the woman laying in front of her. Fuck. Isabella didn't know what to do; her eyes flickered between the dead woman and Tory, who was trying to shake her awake.

"Mom, please. Call 911!" Tory sobbed, and Isabella didn't hesitate to do so. She pulled out the phone from her pocket, her hands trembling, as she put the device next to her ear.

"911, is the patient breathing?" A lady picked up the phone, her voice calm but quick. She repeated, "Hello?"

"N-No." Isabella spluttered, her chin trembling as she spoke. She added, "I, uh, I... Please, hurry."

"We're dispatching an ambulance to you, right now." The lady reassured, "Can you tell me your name?"

Isabella hesitated, "Uh, Bel— Isabella."

"Okay, Isabella. Do you know how to perform CPR?" The lady asked.

"I-I don't know," Isabella said, "I don't think I can."

"I'll be with you this whole time, Isabella." The lady comforted, "If you've already checked her pulse, that's a great start. I need you to make sure that she's on a hard surface, then we can start chest compressions. After every 30 chest compressions, give 2 rescue breaths. Okay?"

"Okay," Isabella responded and moved closer to the body. Tory let go off her mother, watching as Isabella straightened her arms and placing them on her chest. She put the phone on loud speaker and placed it next to the body beside her, "O-Okay, I'm starting."

"Okay, stay on the line with me, Isabella. Count out loud so I can hear, okay?" The lady spoke, "The ambulance will arrive shortly, okay?"

Isabella took a breath; the whole world seemed to unreal, almost as if everything around her was fake. She prayed it was fake and all just a dream. Isabella didn't imagine her night turning into a a rescue mission; she couldn't fathom how Tory must've felt. Her body ached, as she pressed down again and again; tears rolled down her cheek and onto the woman's body, blocking out Tory's sobs so she could concentrate.

"28, 29, 30." Isabella panted, before leaning closer to Tory's mom and performing mouth-to-mouth. She gave two rescue breaths, before starting again. And again. Of course, Isabella doubted she was even doing it right; she never imagined she would ever have to perform CPR.

A loud pattern knocks rattled the wooden door, though Isabella was too busy trying to save a dead person to answer. Isabella panted, counting in her head, "Tory, get the door." She looked up, watching the girl as she sobbed loudly. Isabella cried, "Tory! Get the door."

Tory was snapped back into reality, as she quickly shot up and answered the door to two paramedics. A lady and a man rushed into the apartment, bringing in a Hydraulic Stretcher to place the body on. Isabella could hear Tory crying to the woman, as she explained what had happened.

The man knelt down beside Isabella, confirming to the lady on the phone that they had arrived before hanging up. The man looked at her, his voice softening, "You've done a really good job. Do you mind if I take over?"

Isabella performed another two rescue breaths, before letting the man take over. She couldn't do it again, her body ached with agony and she couldn't see anything because of the tears blurring her eyes. She had failed to save Tory's mom.

The paramedic left Tory to help her colleague perform CPR, retrieving the Hydraulic Stretcher so they could lift her body onto it and wheel her out of the apartment. Isabella watched it all happen as she stood in the kitchen helplessly, as Tory sobbed into her chest.

Isabella's heart felt so empty. She couldn't express the agonising feeling that drowned her.

***

After spending a night at the hospital, and turning off her location so her family couldn't track her, Isabella was left with thousands of calls and texts from Miguel, Carmen, and Johnny.

Throughout the eleven hours spent in the same waiting room, Isabella came to a conclusion that maybe she could be a doctor or paramedic; maybe she could make up for failing to save Tory's mother by dedicating her life to saving people. It would undo the guilt she had inside of her, pitting at her stomach.

"I'm sorry, Tory." Isabella's throat was hoarse and burning, as she hugged the girl again, "I wanna stay, but, my mom expected me home last night and she might have a shift here today... I don't want her to see me—"

"It's okay, Issy." Tory reassured, as she wiped the tears from her cheeks, "Thank you for everything."

Thank you? Isabella had failed to save her mother.

Isabella kissed Tory's head, "If you need a place to crash, just call me, okay? I can sleep on the couch and you can take my bed, or I can get Miguel to sleep on the couch. Our kitchen's fixed now, so it's not a probl—"

"I know," Tory interrupted softly, though her voice broke as she choked back tears, "I'll call you. I love you."

"I love you." Isabella said back, hugging the girl so tightly, "I'm sorry I have to leave."

"I understand," Tory tried to smile, "Please... just don't tell anybody."