"You're getting good at your blocks." Daniel spoke to Bryce the next morning as they practiced, Bryce graduating from yard work to really understand the meaning behind it. "Just remember paint the fence, the attacker won't always just come from the side."

"I heard you got the metal of honor back." Bryce said, practicing his kicks infront of Daniel. "That's exciting."

"It is." Daniel nodded, almost laughing at his small talk ability. "You think you'll be ready to practice the the rest of the students tomorrow?"

"Don't think they'd like that very much." Bryce said honestly, swinging his fist around to show how he'd block someone's punches. "I like it just being the two of us. You don't hate me like the rest of them. Or, you're just good at hiding it."

"Hey, you've gotta win their trust the same way you did mine." Daniel encouraged him with a knowing nod. "It will take time."

"I know that." Bryce took a breath, hunched over slightly. "So, when do I get to learn how to meditate?"

Daniel rose his eyebrows. "Is that Cobra Kai talking?"

"My assface cousin." he said in return with a shrug of his shoulders. "Took him off guard with a kick right to the gut though."

"Rule number one. You don't strike first." Daniel shook his head as he looked at Bryce. "Karate teaches you how to defend yourself, not how to pick a fight."

"Yeah, but, didn't you say we can't always avoid it?" Bryce shifted on one of his feet, titling his head to crack his neck. "He was talking mega shit."

"You can't always avoid it, doesn't mean you have to start it though." Daniel nodded his head, explaining it honestly. "You were at the All Valley, weren't you?"

Bryce nodded his head. Daniel took a breath. "You saw how Cobra Kai fought. It was violent and through offense. You get that in your brain and all you'll think to do is fight for everything in your life."

"How else am I suppose to succeed if I never fight for it?" Bryce asked him honestly, twisting the bracelet on his wrist.

Daniel looked curiously. "You feel like you have to fight for everything?"

Bryce shrugged. "I feel like I need to fight to protect my mom."

"Has someone hurt her?" Daniel frowned his eyebrows in questioning.

"My dad." Bryce nodded his head. "You knew, cheats on his wife, says he's gonna leave her, get both of em pregnant around the same time, then treats her like garbage for some reason."

Daniel pieced his family life together slightly. "So, you and Eli, you have the same dad?"

"And spend every other weekend together." Bryce inhaled, motioning toward his face. "Share a very similar gene pool too."

"It's not my business." the LaRusso man shook his head. "But, you have to understand that the world isn't completely against you. Yes, there are people that you're gonna want to protect in life. And I encouraged you to do so, always. But, you can't build up that anger and pick a fight with just anyone. You'll get no where except in hospital or jail, and I know you don't want that."

Bryce looked down some with an exhale. "I was really shitty to a lot of people."

"I know." Daniel exhaled, staring back at Bryce. "All you can do is move forward from that. You have to want it though."

"I do." Bryce agreed with him. "I just get so mad, Mr.LaRusso."

"What do you get mad about?" he encouraged him to sit down on the steps. "Explain it to me."

"So, let's say there's this freshman in the hallway." Bryce explained as Daniel listened to him. "He's smiling and talking to his friends, and I just get so mad and shove him into his locker."

Daniel frowned his eyebrows. "...okay."

"And then, okay, so, I got to the mall, right? I like to go into Bath and Body Works a lot." Bryce explained with a hand gesture. "And there's this little family, and they're so happy. And next thing I know, I push the tower of A Thousand Wishes lotion onto them."

Daniel exhaled, nodding. "I don't think you're angry, Bryce."

"I definitely am." the teen had to correct him.

"I think your anger forms due to jealousy." the older man explained to him with a nod. "You told me that you're parents aren't together. If you had seen one of those people alone, you wouldn't have dropped all those lotions, would you?"

Bryce shrugged. "Guess not."

"And if you didn't see the freshman talking to friends, you wouldn't have shoved him in the locker." Daniel continued on to explain, nodding his head. "It sounds like you want to inflict humiliation or pain onto the people that remind you the pain you're in."

Bryce shrugged. "I'm not in pain. It's whatever."

"It's not whatever. If your home life is affecting you, it's not just whatever." Daniel said sternly, Bryce wouldn't look at him. "But, you need to find a way to express your thoughts and feelings without causing destruction and hatred."

Bryce picked at his fingers, looking over at him. "Yeah."

Daniel nodded. One word said a million things, patting his back. "Yeah."

Sam had been on the phone with Moon when she heard the rocks at her window. She walked over, looking down at Bryce. She quickly made the excuse her dad was calling her, hanging up on Moon as she opened the window. "What do you want?"

"To make amends." Bryce looked up at her with a shrug. "You wanna go somewhere?"

"Do I look like I want to be murdered or sold?" she gapped in disbelief.

"I'd never sale you." Bryce gave an offended look. "Possibly murder."

Sam rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "You really think you can just fix everything in one night?"

"No, but, I gotta start somewhere." Bryce shrugged his shoulders, looking back at his car. It was a shiny and black, close to the ground, looked like he took an unnecessary amount of care to it. "I'll give you ten minutes. You can come if you want. Or, you know, you can stay cooped up in your room doing whatever it is good girls do on Friday nights."

Sam rolled her eyes slightly, not missing the teasing grin he flashed before getting into his car.

Sam held him to his ten minute word, not coming out until the nine minute mark. Bryce leaned over, pushing the door open for her with a cocky grin. "Samantha LaRusso."

"You try anything and I will make sure you crash this car." she gave a stern look, getting inside. It smelt like cologne and green apples, like he had. "What do you want?"

"Just enjoy the ride." he flashed her a little grin, putting the car out of park and driving down the neighborhood street. Bryce drove with one hand, the other rested on the console. Sam noticed his wrist, the thin bracelet around it. She tried to make it seem like she hadn't been looking at him, glancing out of the tinted windows. "You wanna get some food?"

"No." she said back, glancing around as he took a right. "Where are we even going?"

"Don't know." Bryce said in return. "So, you remember when I'd always make you do my homework?"

Sam scoffed. "Really? Do I remember?"

Bryce hummed. "I'm just, you know, sorry about that. You're just crazy smart, dude."

"So that makes it okay to get me to do your homework?" she looked over in disbelief. "Just to excuse your action?"

"No." Bryce said defensively. "I was trying to compliment you."

"Yeah, well, it didn't work." her blue eyes rolled, looking back out the window as they drove down the dark highway.

"Okay, what if I said i'll never make you do my work again?" he asked her curiously, not truly knowing how to handle any of the 'earning trust' like Daniel had said. "Maybe paying attention would do me some good."

"It's not even just that." Sam rolled her eyes in disbelief. "You think you're better then everyone else and act like a complete jackass."

Bryce tilted his head in agreement. "Yeah, I know."

"And you're proud of that?" Sam looked over with frowned eyebrows in disbelief.

"No. No, not anymore." Bryce shook his head, glancing over at her when they came to a red light. "That's what i'm trying to work on. Getting better, finding ways to react that doesn't involve hurting people around me."

Sam shrugged. "Doesn't excuse anything."

"Obviously." he agreed, which took her off guard. "But, I just wanted to get it out there that i'm sorry for being such a shitty person to you. Even if you did get me good grades."

"It'll surprise you how far you can get with a little bit of attention." Sam mocked slightly, a half smirk thrown his way.

"Damn, girl." he laughed at her. "Tell me how you really feel."

"Just-" she began, stopping as the car gave a hault, Bryce's arm thrown across Sams chest as a few teens danced across the highway, not having a care in the world about the cars. "Jesus."

Bryce looked over, his arm still across her chest. Sam looked down, staring at his arm before looking over. Bryce pulled back and put both hands on the wheel. "I'll drive you home."

•

kylie speaks

look at them bonding!