"EXCUSE ME, we're here to see Carmen Diaz."

The West Valley hospital was busy, filled with patients and families waiting in distress. Isabella, Johnny, and Miguel had sprinted towards the front desk, pushing past the queue in hopes to find out more information. Isabella assumed that Johnny had apologised to Miguel too, since the two were talking as if nothing had happened on the plane journey. Though Isabella was still waiting for Miguel to apologise to her; the twins hadn't spoken a word since their argument.

"Uh, room 54." The receptionist told them, and Isabella was already running down the hallway. The woman called out, "Uh, wait!"

Belle had navigated her way around the hospital, arriving at room 54. Her breaths were heavy and her mind was racing, and she could hear Johnny and Miguel close behind her.

"Mom?" Miguel's voice was shaking, as Isabella opened the door, "Mom."

Belle's eyes darted around: the window, the chair, the empty bed, and the cleaning lady. Where was her Mom? The girl stepped inside the room, instant tears filling her eyes when she noticed the blood stains on the bed sheets.

"Where's..." Johnny spluttered, desperately looking at the Cleaner, "Where's the woman whose room this is?"

The woman stripped the sheets from the bed, placing them on her trolly before slowly shaking her head in confusion. She muttered apologies under her breath, as she slowly made her way out of the room.

"Carmen?" Miguel raised his voice in panic, pleading for answers, "Dónde está Carmen?"

The Cleaner left the room with another shake of her head, leaving the three in feared confusion. Tears were streaming down Isabella's face, as she stood speechless in the corner of the room. She chewed on her nails harshly, the sting of her skin not mattering anymore because her mother was dead. She was dead— Isabella had lost another person because she was too late.

"Was she in this room?" Miguel was crying, shoving Johnny back, "You said she was gonna be okay. You said! You..." Johnny embraced the boy in a tight hug.

Isabella finally let out a breath, her body shaking in an immense amount of grief and shock. Her mother was dead. And, as always, Belle's sadness soon developed into a rage. Her Ma was dead.

Abruptly, the girl grabbed the vase of flowers from the bedside table, throwing the glass object at the wall opposite her. The vase of flowers smashed loudly, forcing Johnny and Miguel to pull out of their hug. Isabella was a mess; sobbing loudly as she destroyed the room bit by bit. She couldn't breathe, so the only thing she could do was tear the room apart.

"Belle! Come on, kid."

Johnny's voice was muffled in Isabella's ears, blocked out as the girl's anger consumed her. Her sobs were so loud that she couldn't hear herself think— her mom was dead.

"Miggy? Johnny?" A new, yet familiar, voice had entered the room. Isabella snapped out of her frustrated trance when she heard her name, "Belle?"

Isabella stopped shouting insults, turning around to meet eyes with her Mom. She was weak, being wheeled in by a nurse and her Grandma. The girl let out a shaky breath, the world becoming reality again as she watched Miguel rush towards their mom.

"What are you guys doing here?" Carmen asked softly, as she hugged Miguel weakly, "Oh, baby, it's okay."

"We had to do an emergency cerclage," The nurse explained, "And we were worried for a few hours, but she's a fighter. And the baby, too. She just needs to stay on bed rest for the next few weeks as she recovers." She smiled, exiting the room, "I'll give you all a moment."

Johnny gave Carmen a gentle kiss, wiping away his tears before standing up. He glanced over at Isabella, who hadn't moved since her mother had entered the room. The girl walked towards her mother, shakily wiping the tears from her cheeks as she crouched down to hug her mom tightly. She didn't want to let go— she didn't want to lose her again.

"It's okay," Carmen comforted quietly, "I'm okay, Belle."

Rosa and Johnny helped Carmen onto the hospital bed, making her comfortable as they all gathered around her. Johnny's arm had been wrapping around Belle's shoulders, almost as if he was refusing to let go of her; the man continued to hug her, rubbing his hand on her comfortingly.

"I can't believe you guys flew all the way back here." Carmen exclaimed.

"You're the best mom in the world," Miguel smiled, "Of course we came back."

"We're never leaving you again." Johnny added, holding onto the woman's hand.

"She's so lucky to have you as a dad," Carmen nodded gently, "Plus, no one's going to mess with a girl whose big brother and sister won the Sekai Taikai." She glanced at Belle, giving her a knowing wink.

Belle frowned slightly, "Ma, we're not leaving."

"You heard the doctor. I'm fine now, really." Carmen reassured, "I just need to rest. Grandma's here. There'll be nothing for you to do. So all three of you need to go back to Spain."

Miguel reasoned, "Ma, we just got here."

"Karate is what brought us together." Carmen explained, before looking between the twins, "And this is your big chance, both of you."

Chance. Isabella ruined her chances a lot; she shared a moment of awkward eye contact with her brother. They still hadn't spoken to each other, or acknowledged their existence.

"Just promise me one thing," Carmen continued; she looked between all three of them, "Win."

***

They arrived at the airport once again, and Isabella found herself sitting down alone as they waited for the plane. Johnny was getting food for the flight, leaving the twins alone; Miguel cautiously sat next to his sister, making the girl cock an eyebrow.

He took a long breath, "I'm sorry for what I said... on the plane. I was stressed about Ma— I didn't mean any of it, Belle. I was being—"

"An asshole." Isabella deadpanned, shooting him a glare.

"Right. An asshole." Miguel nodded, "I'm sorry, Belle."

"You were right, though." Isabella sighed, "I do fuck up every chance I get. I complain about my life being ruined, but I'm the one doing it. Everything bad that has happened to me is because I caused it—"

Miguel shook his head, "Belle—"

"It's okay, Miggy." Isabella nodded, before pausing nervously, "I applied to medical school... because of what happened to Tory's mom. I joined Cobra Kai because I felt like I owed something to Tory after I..."

"Belle, you didn't do anything." Miguel disagreed, his eyes filled with sympathy, "I'm so sorry. I mean, Johnny told me about you being there, but I had no idea about— I thought you weren't going to college."

"Keck's School Of Medicine in Southern California." Isabella said, "I probably won't get in, but it was worth a try. I figured if I tried to fix one mistake I made, I would then be able to fix all the rest. It sound stupid but—"

"It is stupid." Miguel was frowning, but his voice was still calm, "Belle, you barely passed science. We had to turn off the Doctor shows on TV when there was too much blood. And, I mean—"

"You sat over here to apologise, but you're somehow still being an asshole." Isabella scoffed in disbelief, as she glanced back at her buzzing phone.

ROBBY
can we talk?
don't tell anyone

"I didn't mean..." Miguel trailed off, looking curiously at his sister, "Who texted you?"

"None of your business." Isabella shot back, standing up and walking towards another seat in the airport.

BELLE
of course
what happened?