"You gonna finally try out?" Coach Liado asked Bryce later that week, when he did finally go back to school, seeing him throwing a football around. "You still have senior year left."

Bryce looked his way. "I've never played in my life."

"Yeah, but you've got an arm on you." the older man hummed, rocking on his heels as he held the toothpick in his mouth. "A little one on one training this summer and you'll be caught up."

Bryce rose an eyebrow. "I'm thinking about-"

He stopped when he saw Sam in the distance, jumping off the soccer field and kick a guy in the face. He gapped in disbelief, his eyebrows shooting up as he saw Demetri trip Hawk and have him roll. Bryce looked to the coach. "I've gotta go."

Bryce walked over, the PE coach blowing her whistle a number of times. Bryce nodded to the cluster of cheerleaders before her. "Ladies."

"These your friends?" the coach asked, looking over as Sam kicked a ball into one of Cobra Kais faces.

Bryce shook his head. "No clue who they are."

"That's it. Everyone to the principals office now!" she called out, making them pause and look over. Bryce gave an apologetic, and half way mocking, wave.

"Look who it is." Bryce stood by his car, an hour after school let out as Sam walked from the doors. "My favorite little rebel."

"Not a rebel." she huffed, arms crossed. "You waited for me?"

"I said i'd drive you home." he shrugged, opening up the passengers seat door. "Plus, I couldn't miss your first detention."

"Oh, give me a break." she rolled her eyes, getting in as Bryce continued to laugh, getting in on the other side. "We didn't even do anything wrong."

"I thought you put on quite a show." he hummed, placing his hand on the back of her seat to look back, backing up out of the parking lot. "Hungry?"

"Tired." Sam corrected him. "But, I can eat."

"Fantastic." he hummed, turning back in the seat and gripping onto the wheel. "So, I found something out."

"What?" Sam leaned her head back, looking his way.

"My mom use to date your dad right before college." Bryce looked over with a comic laugh. "I was digging through her yearbooks and found these pictures of them when they were younger."

"Are you kidding?" Sam laughed, scrunching her face. "That seems so weird."

"I know." Bryce had to agree. "I wanna ask what happened but she seems to shut me down when I bring it up."

"My dad never talks about any of his ex's aside from this Ali girl." she said in return, looking out the window slightly. "I wonder if your mom was such a jerk like you."

"You still think i'm a jerk? I'm trying here, lady." he placed a fake offended hand on his heart. "You've turned me from an asshole that hates everyone to meditating nice guy."

"I wouldn't go that far." Sam laughed out loud. "You aren't totally nice."

"But, I wouldn't be me if I was totally nice." Bryce gave a knowing look her way, taking a turn. "You love it."

"It is kinda weird." she admired.

He hummed. "What is?"

"I don't know, you." she shrugged, getting a comical look. "It's just hard to imagine how much I use to dislike you."

Bryce had to understand, nodding his head. "Well, it's not like I made it easy or anything."

"No, you didn't." Sam nodded her head. "But, not just anyone would do what you did for me the night of the party."

"Well, I know what it's like to be super drunk like that." he glanced over at her when they pulled into the diner near the school. "I know how other people can get too."

Before Sam could ask what he meant, her phone went off. Bryce frowned his eyebrows when he saw her face fall. "Something happen?"

Sam looked his way. "It's Chris. Can you drive us to Golf N Stuff?"

"Where are they?" Sam asked Chris as the pair hurried in, Demetri and a few more Miyagi-Do's not far behind.

"They snuck into the old laser tag place." Chris looked down at her with a shake of his head.

"How many?" Sam continued to ask.

"Four of em." the taller boy answered with a nod.

"Five of us. I like our odds." Sam pointed out.

"Are you sure we should be doing this?" Demetri looked over in questioning.

"Why not?" Bryce asked with a questionable look. "They'd do the same thing if they knew we were here."

"Bryce is right. This is our chance to fight back." Sam agreed with him, looking back and forth, leading the way as the five hurried off toward the laser tag place. Bryce had the bright idea of cutting the lights, the neon shades from within the laser tag building illuminating them as Sam lead the way.

Hawk looked in disbelief. "What do you want?"

"Payback." Sam answered with a glare.

It didn't take long for a fight to fall out within the two groups. Sam had gone after Hawk nearly immediately, making Bryce take his chances with Assface. He was quick, but he wasn't necessarily a good fighter. Bryce kicked him in the gut, grasping his shirt and giving a harsh shove so he hit the wall, bouncing off it with a groan on the floor. Bryce wasn't alone long before he was attacked to the side, his brother being the attacker.

"You're such a psycho." Bryce mocked as his head was shoved against the wall, Hawk grasping his arms.

"I get it from you." Hawk said back, punching him in the nose as Bryce grasped his arm, giving it a hard pull so he'd turn, kicking him in the back so he'd stumbled off. He made the mistake of doing so, because it gave the red haired boy the perfect opportunity to be infront of Demetri now.

"Sam LaRusso!" a new voice called out, Bryce looked over to see Tory, Mikey, and Big Red walking in. "Where are you, bitch?"

Bryce ducked through the obstacles, looking for Sam. He knew she had avoided running into Tory after the fight, because he was no stranger to PTSD after his moms military days, and he knew that Sam developed some after the fight. He found her in no time, crouching behind a walk way. "Sam."

She gasped in panic, looking back as Bryce kneeled next to her. "There's a door in the back, let's go."

"Where are you, LaRusso!" Tory called out. Sam placed a hand on her heart, taking deep breaths as she backed up further away. Bryce nodded his head, holding her shoulders and pulling her away some.

He kneeled down to be face to face with her, using his finger to make her look at him. "Hey, take deep breaths, okay? She's not gonna hurt you. Stay back here, you two can face each other another day."

"What about the rest of them?" Sam whispered with panicked eyes, hearing Chris call out to them.

"I'll go." Bryce nodded, helping her crouch down before hurrying back from where he originally came from.

"No! Please, stop! Eli, stop! Stop!" Demetri cried out, Eli clutching his arm behind his back.

"Hey!" Bryce yelled out to him, all of Cobra Kai turning away to look back at him. "What the hell is wrong with you? Let him g-"

He was cut off by three of the boys grasping onto him tightly, making Bryce fall onto his knees as they kept him still, struggling against him trying to fight to get loose, but three against one was an easy fight.

"It's me! Don't do it! No!" Demetri continued to try and yell to let him go.

"Finish him!"

"Do it!"

"He deserves it!"

"Do it, Hawk!"

"No. It's fine. I'll go!" Demetri yelled out.

Bryce felt pain in his stomach as he listened to Demetri beg. "Eli! Hey, hey, look back here. Look at me."

He slowly looked back, locking eyes with his brother. Bryce shook his head his way, giving his best smile. "You don't have to do this. It's Demetri, dude. Come on."

He stared at him, slowly turning back. Bryce had thought, just for a second, that he broke through to him. That was, before Demetri cried out, Hawk snapping his arm in half.

•

kylie speaks

the fandom forgave this fool
way too quick. i'm a proud
eli/hawk lover but no amount
of brainwashing will ever
excuse this.