Chapter Text
He had been plotting to officiate this wedding for thirty years! Because Johnny Lawrence was finally going to take the plunge and get married. This was it. Bobby was all but skipping as they got to the house early on the morning of their fearless leader’s big day.
Jimmy was left with the kids and probably never more grateful for that final growth spurt he hit while Dutch and Johnny had been deployed, because the two were wild as bucks and he was struggling to contain them even with the boost. A small part of the preacher was in fact tempted to rejoin the fighters officially. Show off for his nephew long withheld. Truly be the Second Snake once more.
Let his husband go back to being the Runt of the Viper Pit, even if it was ironic these days.
Then he remembered what Kresse almost turned him into. And a bar fight now and again was fine with Johnny back in charge. It's just… He was afraid to become that person again.
Shaking his head and leaving the kids in their uncle’s dojo, Bobby hurried to the backyard. They’d offered to go all out on the decorations, but Johnny and Carmen were minimalists set out to spite him and Rosa for loving them. They’d finally managed to team up and nag the two into garland with flowers around the fence, small favors of a cup that said ‘Sip, Sip, Hooray’ on one side and had cobra wrapped around a Flower of the Andes (which Dutch would like noted, despite not speaking to Johnny yet, was a pain the ass to get right) on the other placed upside down on every plastic chair put in the yard for guests, and a very small arch from Walmart also decorated with flowers too.
Seats filled up quickly as Rosa assured that everything was set up outside with the kids from both dojos, nurses from Carm’s team, and their nuclear families. The only other masters in attendance besides Johnny were their sensei and his new co-sensei. When Satan claimed a spot on the front row next to the mother of the bride, he wasn’t happy about it, but decided to focus on going upstairs to check on everyone.
Miguel’s door was open, so he checked in on his newest nephew first, “Hey, bud.”
“Hey, Uncle Bobby! Guess what?”
“What?”
“He said I could do it!”
“Did he?” He chuckled, not the least bit surprised. Johnny had no real attachment to his last name, but in his absence both the boys who’d spent most of their lives worshiping him from afar became obsessed with it unintentionally, “Congratulations.”
“Thanks!” He was fighting with his tie in that suit and the older man moved to help, “I’ll be Miguel Lawrence by the time they get back!”
“That’s fantastic. Mama Rosa feeling left out?”
“She’d say so.” He shrugged, “She also can’t stop smiling every time someone mentions it, so…”
“You look very handsome,” He promised of his dark suit and tie get-up, the latter matching his mother’s dress since he was standing in lieu of a bride’s maid or matron.
When he bounced on downstairs to see all of his friends, Bobby was far from insulted. All they really wanted after the chaos of the last few months was for the kids to be happy. Miguel was perfectly that and content to be so.
Knocking on the door to Robby’s room, he announced himself and heard a quiet bid to enter, but he wasn't expecting to find him sitting in a dark room fully dressed. Just staring out of the window from his perch there, “You okay, sweetheart?”
“Yeah… Just…” Bobby wandered over to sit with him and followed green eyes to the front rows of seats on Johnny’s side. Mama Rosa, Miguel, and Kreese were loitering there and actually seemed to be chatting pleasantly with the LaRussos. “Didn’t much feel like being a tug toy.”
“Ahh.” Pissed him off to no end. Baby finally finds somewhere safe, now Johnny was letting the devil terrorize him in his own house, “He been giving you a hard time since your dad had to show you off?”
“Why does everyone think he’s evil incarnate?!” Robby demanded vehemently, “Why does Dad get every second chance in the world? But everyone gets to hate him?"
Startled the preacher to realize that his problem wasn’t with Kreese.
“...While the angel in white gets every excuse made for him?”
He took the tip off for what it was, arching a brow, “You having problems with Sensei LaRusso?”
When he looked down at the guest for a moment, thinking about it hard, Robby sighed, “No.”
“You sure, sweetheart?”
“Yeah,” Robby shook his head, as if he was trying to shake something off, “Moving to solo training’s just been harder than I thought… That’s all.”
“It’s a different sort of lesson than class.” He remembered solo lessons unfondly himself, “If you decide it’s not for you, then that’s okay too.”
“It’s what I want,” Robby assured, head knocking against the wall behind him. “November just can’t get here soon enough.”
“Fair.” Not wanting to rush away from the topic, he also was on the clock, “How are you feeling now that the big day is here?”
His nephew scoffed, assuring his dad was already married. Obviously. The Champ was smitten. This just made it official.
Once he was sure that none of Robby’s upset had anything to do with his dad or Carmen, Bobby went downstairs after checking that the bride was in good spirits with the Master suite to herself. Rosa was outside, but she’d made Johnny sleep in her room while she guarded the bride, then kept them on opposite floors for the last day. So, finding the karate sensei meant going down the basement where he’d been imprisoned since getting breakfast.
“Ow,” Johnny whined when his hands were smacked away from the bowtie he was trying desperately to wrangle without success.
Fixing it, he hissed, “You know what LaRusso’s doing in solo lessons that has him humanizing the devil?”
“No, but he’s been poking around asking Dutch questions too.” Johnny rolled his eyes as the other man waited for him to explain further with a look, “He finally called me last night.”
“Fantastic.”
“I fucked up. Taking Robby over there.”
“What can that jackal even do for him? He won!”
“Alright, can we stop blowing it out of proportion, please? He was able to take one point using assumption, surprise, and endurance to his advantage.”
“Well, fuck you!”
“I’m not taking it from him. I just want all of you to chill.” The Champ muttered defensively, “Forgive me not rushing to put him against the bastard in a bar brawl.”
"If that's true, then whoever taught that kid to strategize is a tactical genius."
"Yes, I guess the motherfucker is," Johnny hissed.
Knowing Barnes was a sore subject as soon as he realized what the Champ meant, Bobby tried to encourage his friend. “If his current sensei can’t hack it,” He insisted, because they had to play the hand that had been dealt now, “You’re gonna have to get in there.”
“I barely get away with advice when we’re working out here at the house.” Johnny dismissed, "He's back in class until I get back anyway. I told Danny there was no reason to run himself thin."
"Solo instruction takes a lot more focus," He acknowledged.
“They just started two weeks ago. Give them a minute to adjust.”
Praying that his best friend was right, they went to get him married. It was a beautiful wedding with Bobby limiting himself to only teasing the Champ an appropriate amount, so that the balance of heartfelt and funny stayed harmonious, he would never forget having that privilege. Especially when he and Carmen were smitten for all to see and their sons in obvious agreement. One of the kids at Miyagi-Do really wanted to be a photographer and asked to take pictures; they turned out stunning from ceremony to reception.
He wouldn’t lie about being a bit relieved they’d decided to forgo any form of ringbearer, because it just wasn’t necessary. His sons were the perfect age, but would have fought to the death over that title. The pastor could have lived without his husband’s teasing as he demanded to know why that tradition wasn’t important; idiot.
They were going to start lessons at Miyagi-Do as having Johnny full time meant that the dojo was now able to offer a younger and older class like Cobra Kai. Danny hadn’t actually based the contracts he proposed to the blond originally on full time hours that he was used to and Bobby had watched the business man stunned to learn what profitable models for dojos looked like when the Champ sketched it out neatly for him. When he’d gone to get another beer, the cobra hadn’t been able to resist a call out.
“You weren’t expecting him to be good at this.”
Brown eyes darted to him from the sectional.
And Jimmy just laughed from the other recliner, flipping through the options, as his husband stared down their old rival, “He always planned to do this for a living.”
“Oh.” Danny nodded slowly between them, “I did not know that.” He was looking up something on his computer, probably making sure what Johnny had sketched out was accurate. When he looked between them after starting to rewrite the contracts, the crane confessed, “Making money off karate itself never occurred to me. Using it as a gimmick was the closest I came.”
“In this arena,” The pastor just scoffed, “He knows a lot more than you.”
They’d gone back to watching whatever game was on by the time he’d come back. Contracts were updated and it wasn’t even that they didn’t like Daniel LaRusso. He just constantly seemed to underestimate Johnny and Robby, so neither of them liked it when that happened. Finding out that his nephew wasn’t enjoying solo lessons just grated him more.
It wasn’t something to ruin Carmen and Johnny’s day. The ceremony was beautiful and after partying for several hours in the backyard, they departed on their honeymoon leaving Rosa to watch the boys. He had hung around with his husband until everyone else cleared out, but then it was time for them to go too. Miguel had his paperwork all filled out and ready to be submitted, so Jimmy took it with him to file Monday. They couldn’t have been prouder of the newly minted Lawrence family.
…
Getting Carmen married this time, she knew that it was going to be forever. She regretted trying to force the issue when her daughter had been so young, but they made it here and that was all that mattered in the long term. Johnny loved her so much and the boys were so happy. Rosa couldn’t have been in a better mood as Monday morning rolled around.
She had to much fun talking to Juan at the wedding. He'd told him all about Johnny's younger years and how much of his father he saw in Robby. Feeling the same about Miguel and her Carmencita, Rosa enjoyed him.
The first couple of days she barely even noticed that their parents were gone. Beto jetted off to his skatepark after breakfast and Miguel was gaming. Both did very well sticking to the same schedules without their parents there, so she just kept things moving as always. It wasn’t until the week was closing out that something registered as off.
She thought they were in class with Daniel LaRusso together, because that was what Johnny said would happen until he came back. When her new grandson was already in the kitchen as she got up to make breakfast, sometimes having already made it himself, that wasn’t odd necessarily. It had become apparent with a couple of months behind them that he was used to doing things for himself and had no concept of waiting on someone else to do it for him.
If there was laundry, he did it. If there was a mess, he cleaned up. If the first one awakened, he made food.
There wasn’t an ounce of lazy teenager in this one and she could see more of his daddy in him every day in that sense. It was only logical there would be consequences if he didn’t have something to do with all of that energy. It wouldn’t strike her that karate wasn’t cutting it until Friday morning as they were sitting around at breakfast.
Miggy was a bit sullen when he finally broke the silence that she’d been waiting to end as one does a fever, “We really miss you, dude.”
“I miss you guys too,” Beto muttered. “More than you know.”
“¿Quien murió?”
They both rolled their eyes, but it did make the older boy’s mouth tug at a corner. She had been puzzled as the elation of the previous weekend eroded. Even Miguel’s new permit arriving Wednesday hadn’t carried over as the mauldin settled around them.
“We just hate that he’s moved to solo lessons, Mama.”
“What happened to class until Juanito came back?”
“The dealership’s quiet hours are in the mornings.” Beto sighed and didn’t finish his last couple bites. She allowed it where his father would not. “If we keep pushing through solo lessons, then it’s over that much sooner and Sensei LaRusso leaves for Japan early.”
“¿Estás entrenando por las mañanas?”
“Yep.”
“¿Durante la clase?”
Beto shrugged, “I just go to the boardwalk until I pick everyone up. Sometimes I meet up with Shawn.”
Rosa did not like the sound of that. It was too reminiscent of his time under Shannon Keene’s care. Personally, she thought her new son’s generation was probably protesting too much when it came to Johnny’s father. And anyone could see that John Kresse was his father, so she decided to go to the other karate master for advice rather than disturbing the newly weds’ first week beginning to wrap up.
It was astounding how everyone couldn’t see Miguel was to Johnny, what that boy had once been to John Kresse. In that same way, Robby took about as much from his Uncle Dutch’s raising as he did from his dad’s biology. Knowing that she had almost managed to fuck up her daughter’s entire life, Rosa knew what it was to have deeply held regrets as a parent. They had spent more hours and tears working through those regrets then she cared to confess.
Cutting off the only parent that he had left was not an answer. If they still had issues to resolve, then it was time to do that work. Not run from it. Especially when she could deal with a little backup her own age; being a grandparent was a lot of work.
After talking to him at the wedding, she thought all that was needed was an olive branch.
So, she just offered general encouragement, then made plans to go by Cobra Kai after they separated. Knowing that Robby Lawrence was completing solo training before any of them were awake, then going to the skatepark, and now she was going to parlay to let him run around another dojo… There could be no more skipping meals, even partially. Johnny would kill her, if his son lost weight on her watch.
That evening she watched as Beto picked up his boyfriend and girlfriend. While there were others no one could deny those two had become the steadies pretty openly. He spent most days with them and didn’t have that wandering eye associated with most people his age. Sure, he’d mentioned his tank-like lover was still around, but Rosa figured that was mostly a historical connection.
Once he’d driven off to pick up Miguel from Miyagi-Do, she got out of the new Audi Q5 that Carmen had finally relented to her new husband buying, if he agreed that it would be the family car. Technically, it was assigned to Rosa more often than not for day to day running, but it was a good car to have around when they didn’t need something as large as the Mercedes. There was no doubt that Miguel was already looking with his new father’s encouragement, but he wanted a sports car. Robby had a sedan, yet Johnny pointed out that he’d be off at college in just two years and his new brother with him.
Depressed is what the thought made them all.
Seemed like the best fighters were always the last to leave, because the place was deserted when she got inside. Most of the lights were already put out in the main part of the dojo, but she followed a soft glow back toward Johnny’s old office. There was muttering as she got closer to it.
“...ome gift. Still balancing books over seventy. Fuck!” She couldn’t stop grinning at the silver fox behind that desk, while he'd been handsome in that suit, gis and denim were his natural habitat, “He kept you up immaculately. I’ll give the little shit that.”
“Not as much fun as you remembered?”
Hoping to have said it right, she waved when his head shot up from the paperwork. Dark eyes twinkled a bit at the sight of her as he hurried up and around the desk, “Rosa! What are you doing here?”
They hugged as he wandered over.
“I…” Warm hands came to rest on her upper arms when he got in range and she reached up to take her sunglasses off. “I’m having a problem with the boys… Well, Beto.”
“Beto?” He gestured her over to the couch in the office.
“Roberto,” She clarified, because he’d been confused when she first called him ‘Juan’ too, before forcing out, “Robby.”
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
“What if… I know Juanito likes his gestures, but-” Cutting herself off, she didn’t know how to ask him this question.
“Rosa, is Robby okay?”
“Es no...” Huffing, the grandmother of two decided to just say it, “He started solo lessons y no one es happy. Daniel was supposed to put him back en la classe until Juanito came back, but… Beto es miserable, Juan!”
“Oh.”
“Now, Miggy es exigente, because his hermano disappeared.”
“He can’t hang around for both,” The karate master acknowledged, “State and federal regulators would have LaRusso’s ass.”
“So he’s running around toda la tarde y… I was hoping he could stay here with Tory and Hawk?”
“That’s fine.” After a moment of thought, he got up stretching, “You know I really thought I wanted to be back in the Captain’s chair? Would have said I even needed it.”
She was curious, “And now?”
“I want that boy back so bad. I never wanted to drag his little blond ass back here more.”
Rosa couldn’t stop laughing.
“It’s not funny.” He was grinning too though. Sometimes it was good to be their age and have the courage to just name this shit, “Do you think he’ll be offended, if I tell him to just buy it back?”
“No.” There wasn’t an ounce of her that thought Johnny would be offended. He had thought it necessary to get out of the way; a strategy to protect the boys. And perhaps John Kreese had also needed this experience to realize he didn’t want the hassle of a dojo anymore, “He just wanted to give it back, because you wanted it. Lavó tu permiso para explorar una ruta diferente.”
“I’m gonna need some help with that, doll.”
Rosa scoffed and thought about it, “He wanted your blessing to branch out.”
“Oh.” A large paw swiped through curly silver hair, “Maybe I can swing by for dinner tomorrow? Check on these rascally sons of Johnny’s?”
“Why wait?” She demanded, nodding him out of the office, “I’ve got to grab dinner on the way home.”
Just grabbing several pizzas, they got there right after the boys returned from dropping off Tory and Hawk. The pair were lounging around the kitchen in sweats and tanks, Beto loading the dishwasher and Miggy watching something on his phone. Rosa shouted her typical greeting and wasn’t surprised when Cat Eyes looked up first to notice their guest.
“Sensei Kreese!”
Juan chuckled, taking off his jacket, “Do you have to call me that outside the dojo? Makes me feel like I’m still at work.”
“Sorry.” Beto, rarely at a loss for words, searched for a moment, “What would you prefer?”
“Honestly?” He studied the younger man, taking a seat at the table, “Grandpa, or whatever variation you’d have, but it may be too soon for that.”
She smiled, loving his honesty. Especially when it made Robby flush, but he grinned as well.
Miggy jumped at finally realizing an unfamiliar presence was joining him at the table and an earphone popped out, “Sensei! What are you doing here?!”
“Just swung by for dinner to check on you boys.” He chatted with them about their week without Johnny, asking how many parties had in fact been thrown, while she was getting everyone plates and drinks. Dark eyes lingered on them happily and hung on every word offered.
Both were all too happy to spill about their week at the skatepark or playing uninhibited. When he turned the conversation toward karate, Beto didn’t hesitate to bear his truth too, “Solo lessons suck!”
Miguel was more hesitant to disclose, muttering broadly, “Johnny will be back soon.”
“That in no way helps me,” His brother reminded. “Why isn’t it November already?”
He seemed to know right away that Robby didn’t mean the next tournament, so the karate master drilled, “What’s in November?”
“Sensei LaRusso said we’d be finished.”
“That’s a big step, finishing your first mastery.”
"Whatever." Robby glared at another slice of pizza, "I just need him to get to Okinawa."
“What’s in Okinawa?” His abuelo demanded, taking the offending piece and putting it on his plate when the boy didn’t move fast enough.
Despite rolling his eyes, he also started on the final stretch, “My first sensei.” He started eating, before muttering around his first swallow, “You know, the one who actually gave me that first mastery.”
Juan glanced down at him from swigging at his beer, “If I cause offense, I expect you to fucking say it out loud.” When Beto finally looked up at him from the pizza, the older man huffed, “You have a mastery already?”
“Yep. Could have gone through the paces for monkey style at ten,” He shrugged at what was a caveat that had been explained to her repeatedly as the same revelation was told over the last couple of weeks, “If anyone would have taken me seriously.”
“That is really impressive, kid.”
Miguel looked nervous at Roberto choosing to reveal such information. He looked even more so when they kept talking. Juan assumed that Johnny had taught him how to block dirty moves, but Beto was quick to divulge Mike Barnes used to date his mom and did it instead, so the truth was out before her grandson could even have a heart attack. Although the Champ was terrified of Kreese learning who trained his son, she suspected that was more embarrassment for how poor a father he’d been until recently.
There was no running from it, whether he liked it or not.
The man didn’t take off to make Barnes his plus one or anything. Instead, it seemed that the disclosure made him realize it wasn’t about the solo lessons themselves, where her showing up hadn’t perhaps done the trick alone. Beto knew how to take instruction from multiple teachers with different styles, especially as he kept talking when they finished and moved into the den for movies, because he described Barnes and Toguchi’s teaching methods as seeming polar opposites. LaRusso wasn’t instructing the boy well, so it was wearing on him.
Karate took a back seat as they got downstairs. Miguel relaxed when the world didn’t end with the truth’s reveal and the boys ended up in the recliners, while she took the sofa with Juan. At one point she caught Miggy gesturing to them with disgust, before Roberto snidely reminded what his showing out had gotten them this far. His grandmother enjoyed watching him sit with that before deciding he'd withhold judgment for the time being. It was a great night, leading to an even better week until her daughter returned with Juanito.
He came over most days and the boys’ attitudes improved remarkably.
Roberto started staying at Cobra Kai with his partners in the afternoons, quickly discovering that his grandfather kept the same style of class his father used and it was a lot of fun. Although he couldn’t participate, observing let him take in that energy which was so very missed. She thought he was perhaps thinking to like the class even better, if it was still the Champ instructing, but that wasn’t said to her and could only be speculation at this point. Apparently Beto tried to take up his uncle’s old boxing regime when first joining Miyagi-Do, but was told punching it wasn’t the solution to everything per his crane sensei. Kreese had no such qualms and even taught him how to roll his wrist for a more effective punch, before going back to class that first day according to his babbled storytelling over dinner.
Worried as he’d been, because Miguel knew that Johnny hadn’t wanted his father to know, her grandson was happier that Robby was happy. Classes still weren’t great at Miyagi-Do, but that was alright. He was with Sam and Demetri was nice. Plus, every morning he said more reverently that Johnny was almost back.
Friday night after the kids went to bed, she was sitting with him out of the deck, “I wasn’t aware it was una prueba de resistencia.”
“Doll…?” He trailed off like he always did when a little help was required.
She really had to think for a minute, because Rosa was irritated, “Didn’t know Johnny was paying for him to endure these lessons.”
“He's no quitter,” The sensei noted of Johnny's only boy.
“They'd have been so much happier staying with you.”
“I know Johnny likes to give gifts,” John Kreese noted, but had to admit, “Still don't know why he rushed out to begin with.”
“He was protecting the boys.”
“From what?”
She arched a brow in his direction until it finally struck Cobra Kai’s founder. Rosa felt for him as that handsome face fell.
“Oh.” Juan scoffed into his coffee as where they'd wound up sunk in. After a moment, he took a shot at changing the subject, “You should ask Bobby to give him a few tips. He’d know about that better than anyone.”
“¿El pastor?”
“Mmhmm,” Polishing off the cup, he confessed, “We were always very different people. Long before it came to a head.”
“Your black sheep?”
“He was the Second Snake,” His tone seemed to deny, “But I suppose it depends on your qualifiers.”
“Then you ask him.”
…
There was a time in his life when he’d thought to never get caught. The mentality really defined his twenties, but there honestly was something to turning thirty. That was when he’d come back to California and actually started trying to be smarter about the bullshit that was how he made a living. Because that was all it had been for a long time; at least another decade in fact. Organizing street fights was a means to cash.
End of story.
Right up until their kid turned ten. Dutchman Kreese had thought himself an expert at holding his best friend’s spawn at bay, then got shown up just after that brat got into the double digits. It was twisted. And a bit of a strike against his pride, if he were being honest.
Robby had pranced home announcing the feat, then he’d watched as horror built in dark eyes for a year before Sato showed up at their door. In that time arguments had become more frequent. They fought over anything and everything from then on, but mostly about how that boy was going to walk his path with certainty now… It had not been a good year for any of them.
When Chozen went back to Okinawa, sure they told Robby that he was going to take care of his dying uncle, but would certainly be back. Even he had known that what felt like a breakup likely was the end of their family unit, because Dutch hadn’t thought himself ready to give it up or tell the karate master that he would. Not then, not yet.
Which was one of the stupidest moments to define his life. Truly. Like anything other than maybe that kid was worth having Chozen walk away from him!
It hadn’t been until he busted the boy playing a bookie role for his middle school’s athletics program when realization finally struck of how right his partner had been. If he didn’t stop… So, he’d pulled out Jimmy’s number kept at the back of his wallet for years in case of an emergency and sold his own syndicate down river to teach that boy a lesson.
Not that it had done any good, apparently. Nope, he still got involved in some sicko kiddie ring Winston hatched after the artist got locked up thanks to Shannon's abandonment. Dutch had only ever raised his hand to a woman, that woman, one time in an emergency, but at the moment he’d go for a second shot.
He tried to keep reminding himself that she was gone now. Johnny had done it. Finally, he’d just gone to get the boy. Because that was all Dutch had ever asked of him for thirteen years only to be met with deaf ears. It shouldn’t matter how or why he finally wound up going over there, yet it was bugging the absolute shit out of him.
All the bullshit his father had the audacity to raise them on, but even after all of it he’d willingly begged Johnny to get involved. Just do it, just help. Then one day he just does it out of the blue, long after Dutch gave up and felt the need to get himself locked up to break a norm he’d established for the child, then once Robby already participated in the shit twice out of necessity?
What the actual fuck?!
It didn’t matter. Not in the long term.
Finishing a large back tattoo, he’d heard a phone call come in across the tablet, but hadn’t been able to stop. His cellmate was the local gossip and facilitator for the block, so he made himself available to all in the common areas from morning to lights out, which made them an ideal match with everyone making appointments to come here taking up most of their mingle hours indoors. He didn’t have time for anyone from the home block during yard hours. Not with three other blocks asking for his time out there, even with the more limited outdoor equipment.
They were making it work here no matter what. That’s the way this went. Luckily being in minimum security their guards were watchful, but didn’t tend to fuck with them so long as everyone behaved. After all, they were the group most likely to get the hell out of here and not come back, if anyone could.
Checking the device, Dutch grimaced at the sight of his father’s unsaved number. Yes, he had it memorized, but only hoping it would one day lead to a cop telling him that asshole croaked. Kinda hard to deny the fucker completely when they shared a last name and deep down knowing Ma would never forgive him doing it.
“What’s happening, Curls?”
Enrique had just gotten his black hand of the Mexican Mafia. Nice enough kid, Dutch tended to avoid the gangs personally, because it was easier to stay in everyone’s good graces with his talents rather than take sides. He shrugged, “Gotta call my old man.”
“That bad?”
“Our last real conversation was before he strangled my brother for losing a karate tournament.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah… Fuck me.” He didn’t even know what the bastard could want the day of Johnny’s return. The blond was due back tonight.
Phone calls let him know that the snake was around, but it was the Champ’s choice at this point. Nothing he could do from inside a cell after he blew their chance at forbidding Robby from him all together. For all the times he’d ever told the boy that if he knocked at the devil’s door long enough, someone was going to answer, the Dutchman would just have to pray he was wrong.
Or something.
“He’ll be gone before you know it,” The younger man said in the tone of someone speaking from experience.
“Don’t tease.”
“Damn.” Just laughing it off, the kid knew to mind his business around here and excused himself, “Alright, then. Much obliged.”
“Until next time.” Hitting the screen and returning the call once alone, he took one of those deep breaths that Bobby thought solved everything.
“Hello?”
“Pa.” He didn’t want to drag this out with pleasantries, not even to figure out how he got this number, because the last time they spoke was before Dutch got arrested; when he’d been offered the jackass’ number for emergencies, “Problem?”
“Umm… Yeah. It’s Robby.”
“What happened?”
“He’s… Really struggling in these solo lessons with LaRusso and Rosa told me to get Bobby, if I thought he’d be able to help, but uhh…” He trailed off for a minute and Dutch just waited. Maybe he felt a little satisfaction trying to make the old man say it, “Well, you know that none of you have really spoken to me since I- I attacked Johnny.”
It was honestly the only time he’d ever heard the bastard say it. Truly, it was rewarding. It was… validating to steal Bobby’s word for the experience. After shouting at him why they were all so angry and couldn't forgive him at the top of his lungs before storming off long prior to Robby, Dutch had memorized the phone number bitterly never expecting to actually have this moment.
“I was hoping you could ask him to step in.”
“I’m not doing it for you either,” Dutch announced seriously, but he was already copying his other brother’s number into a text message to his father and quickly sent it off, “Call him with the details.”
“I will… Dutch?”
“What?” He’d been about to hang up.
“I… I am sorry, son. So sorry. For Johnny,” There was a distinct sound of him swallowing, even across the line, “For so many things.”
Apparently they’d entered the fucking Twilight Zone. Huffing, he decided in an instant that if they had to tolerate the Founding Snake’s presence, then it might as well be useful, “You just keep an eye on Robby and don’t put him through anything else. Kid’s had enough bullshit for a lifetime.”
“I swear.”
News trickled in slowly from there. Indeed, his friend and spiritual advisor was calling him within a couple of hours as he was working on his next client. They were able to kill most of that appointment chatting about how he wanted to approach the topic with his namesake, because apparently Mr. Religion was one of the first people discontent had been expressed to. Now, they were at an unavoidable impasse.
Bobby was fascinated by the apology he’d gotten and happy to pry for his feelings on the topic. Dutch just told him to go fuck himself, knowing perfectly well what the topic of their prison mandated hour was going to be Monday, then hung up. Because he hadn’t been sure how he was feeling, honestly.
Later that night Johnny finally got home and Robby posted pictures of their reunited family, all five smiling brightly for the camera, right before Miguel Lawrence went live with new profiles. It was nice to see both so excited with the Champ’s return, no matter how long it took, because all Dutch ever really wanted was for his godson to be happy and taken care of. Seeing the different generations together was warming.
Five became six when the old man stopped by as he had most nights their blond brother was away, but Dutch was surprised by how well he blended into the image they created in Johnny’s den watching movies after everyone was unpacked, clean, and in pajamas. They made a striking sight when his friend actually made one post complaining about their sensei canoodling with the new mother-in-law. It was even cuter when Miguel replied with a comment Johnny hadn’t needed permission before swooping in on his mother, so he’d best get over it.
There was one post on Robby’s timeline that wasn’t seen until the next morning when wifi was reinstated, because it had been posted long after Saturday turned to Sunday. Apparently after all the excitement Dutch’s father spent the night with Rosa, but he’d been unable to sleep just like the teenager. They’d posted a picture of the both of them laughing as Gilligan’s Island played in the background. One of the truly happy memories concerning his father during childhood had been when that stupid show was on, even after developing a little resentment for it in his own teen years and, despite Dutch's best efforts, it had been an absolute favorite of that boy’s as a toddler and small child as well.
It would have been insignificant, if it didn’t magically explain why John Kreese suddenly became Skipper to both Lawrence boys, especially Robby. And the image would not leave his head for weeks after.
“...ink he’s up to something?”
Bobby could ask the question, but Dutch had his own, “He actually offered him the dojo back?” He coulnd’t fucking believe it after the pastor told him as the return melted away what hadn’t been posted on social media, “He’s giving up Cobra Kai?”
“Running it,” The idiot stipulated at his demand, “He still makes a small percentage as founder.”
He didn’t give a shit about that. It had never been about the money. That was… for both of them, it wasn’t the measure of success that tempted either. For him it had been the thrill of rebellion and his father that of victory.
“Dutch,” Bobby demanded his attention. “I’m supposed to go by the skatepark tomorrow.”
“I asked him to look after that kid and he swore to it. Do I trust him? No.” Dutchman Kreese had to confess though, “He’s never apologized or given up competition before either. So… We’re in uncharted waters here, brother.”
“Fuck.” Boy looked ready to throw up right now. “I was afraid you were gonna say that.”
They didn’t talk about it anymore, because there was no more either could say. The rest of that session was spent talking about others in the block and what everyone had going on. How he felt about his first pass at the parole board approaching somewhere in the next month without exact specificity. Scoffing, the inmate reminded everyone knew no one made it out their first two passes. And Jimmy had to recommend at least a five year minimum for what he'd been caught doing.
His friend argued an average of two passes meant there were exceptions; if he wanted to be there to see Robby turn seventeen, then it was up to him to fight for it.
That hung around.
It wasn’t until Tuesday night that things finally came to a head after Bobby talked to the gang’s collective child and grandchild, because he made the choice to put their founder into the group chat, then present the whole case against LaRusso to their Cobra Council of five that should have been six. From Robby just not getting the most out of Daniel LaRusso’s instructing style to that being exacerbated by solo lessons, Bobby then moved on to his defiance of Johnny’s will to halt those individualized classes and the child’s hesitance to say any of this to his father for fear the Champ would either have things made more difficult at his new job, or worse, that he wouldn’t be allowed to just finish the mastery.
In a slight call out of the old man, Bobby also revealed that Robby was being encouraged to push through by Cobra Kai’s founder, but apparently he found comfort in that according to the teenager. Everyone else he’d found the courage to express his discontent to just wanted him to quit, however that didn’t seem to be what the boy was looking for at all. Where LaRusso was placating and gracious, methodical and boring as hell, their kid did this for stimulation and to get all that energy out. Class with more students had him picking it up to a tolerable place, but alone Robby was trying not to punch him and mean it.
It took a while, but eventually Johnny was the first to come back.
8:03pm JL: I’m guessing there’s no taking him out on the porch for a chat?
8:03pm BB: I’ll kill you.
8:03pm BB: Don’t even think about it.
8:04pm JL: Fine. I’ll murder LaRusso tomorrow for my part.
8:05pm JK: You scare him off finishing that training, Beto will have your ass.
8:05pm DK: Beto?
8:05pm JB: Sensei has a point. You’re right to be pissed as a dad, but when their anger turns on you it sucks. Don’t go looking for trouble.
8:06pm BB: Robby > Robert > Roberto > Beto
8:10pm JL: Then what do I do?
8:10pm JL: If he won’t listen to me about my kids, I don’t have a shot with the others.
8:11pm JK: You suck it up like a big boy for a couple of months, then come home just like we talked about.
8:11pm JK: You put an opt out in your contract, yes?
8:12pm JL: Of course. At 3 months.
8:13pm DK: What do you think Miguel will do?
8:14pm JL: He didn't wanna move from Cobra Kai to begin with.
8:15pm BB: That settles it then. 3 months break at Miyagi-Do and you’re all spending his sophomore year at Cobra Kai.
8:20pm JL: I’m mad at him right now, but I still feel bad fucking LaRusso. He needs a manager.
8:21pm JK: Let him ask this old sensei of Robby’s. Seniors get priority.
8:22pm BB: Time to quit your day job, stud.
8:22pm JB: 🖕🏼
8:25pm JL: That could work.
Dutch lost access to the wifi a mere thirty minutes later, but there was no more discussion before then. He just needed Robby to be alright out there without him. Three years in here and two before the Parole Board was even going to give his sob story the time of day… All he wanted was to get back to his family that was growing without him.
…
Johnny had to get on the same page with his boys and didn't want to waste time. He had to find a way without causing a larger catastrophe. Since they got back theoretically he knew where his son was going everyday thanks to Rosa, but they hadn't discussed it for Robby to know that he knew. Luckily, a chance to make him confess presented itself at the monthly weigh in, “You want to explain this?”
Robby had been chatting with his new stepbrother unheeding the scale as he'd been steadily going up with such persistence. Cat eyes hurried to the number and found it only up by five pounds… Nothing compared to what he'd been adding on, “Shit.”
“Just how much fun were you having while I was gone?”
“I wasn't…”
“You weren't sitting around getting high.”
“No, I…”
Miguel looked terrified between them.
The Champ watched his son bleed defiance after a moment to think on it, “I've been going to Cobra Kai and doing Uncle Dutch's boxing routine.”
“Did you calculate that?”
Realizing he wasn't stuck on it like they expected, Robby scrutinized the scale, “I thought I had.”
He was still going up, so Johnny guessed, “And you were eating everything you were supposed to while I was gone, right?”
Miguel snorted.
Robby smacked him.
Johnny got between the two demanding his oldest's attention again, “This is serious.”
“I know!” He pouted and proved far harder on himself in the last couple of months then any of them could ever pretend to be.
Squeezing his shoulder, the Champ promised, “It'll be fine, but no more slacking off.”
He started to walk away and mouthed a countdown as he did so, perfectly predicting when Miguel found his voice, “I thought we were banned from Kreese for life. What happened?”
They'd been standing around the scale in his and Carmen's bathroom, but Johnny just continued vacating to take a seat on their bed. It felt so good when both boys had gotten comfortable enough to join him quickly, either pressed to a shoulder. He sighed and tried to be honest, “I think Sensei Kreese and I lost trust, but instead of fighting to get it back, I just ran. Honestly, I don't think he's that person who hurt me anymore.”
Thinking back, Sensei hadn't said or done anything awful the last few months. His style of delivery had just started grating Johnny as they tussled over the dojo and casting him as a villain was easier. And dirty moves?
There was a time and place to teach kids, particularly teenagers, that no betrayal ever came from an enemy. He was still sick that he let their first tournament go the way it had, but it was a lesson Barnes taught Robby long before Kreese even tried it. How mad should he really be?
“Could I go back now?”
“Miguel, I am so sorry. I never should have made you feel like you had to leave.” Johnny really did want them to know, “I just never wanted to give him a chance to get to either of you. It wasn't until after, I remembered that meant you miss a pretty interesting guy all together.”
“I wanted to be with you,” Miggy insisted. “I still do!”
“But?”
“... Miyagi-Do just isn't the same, Dad.” It was a new thing outside the dojo, but made everyone grin. “And I don't think it's going to get any better when he doesn't have this one to focus on.”
“That's fair.” He confessed, “I thought about going back to Cobra Kai in November.”
“Really?!” Robby looked nothing like when he heard Johnny was coming to Danny's dojo a month ago.
“Yep. Danny said you're sailing through,” He acknowledged. The blond also thought that if LaRusso needed extra time in Okinawa for himself, then he didn't need the excuse of Toguchi or the dealership, nor anything else. “So, where do you boys want to be?”
“I'm going back with you!” Miguel declared. “Sam will get over it.” He groaned and flung himself back on the bed. “I can't believe you didn't say it a week ago! I could be back with Hawk!”
“You don't have to endure for me, Miguel.” Johnny rolled his eyes, “Just go back.”
“I can't now!”
“Why not?”
He huffed, “I had to have a talk with Sam, because it just wasn't working out. She asked me to give it until Halloween.”
“Oh.” Johnny did feel the need to clarify, “Then that's on you, beastie.”
Miguel grinned, then forced his face to sour like he hated it. They'd never confess to like Maleficent after the girls made them partake. He liked the extended nickname though, now that it had a softer version for outside the dojo.
Knowing his other son might not want to abandon the home team completely, Johnny inquired for what Robby wanted to do. The genius, and a slack jawed Carmen confirmed that was the accurate word when they saw his test scores, didn't have to search.
“As soon as I can get through this mastery,” Robby muttered, eyes screwed shut.
Warning flares lit behind sky blue, Johnny cautioning, “Getting your weight up is more important then getting to Cobra Kai. Do you understand me?”
“Yeah,” Robby said without regard.
“Hey!”
Rarely did he let himself really yell at the kid outside of the dojo, but this was an exception. He took no pleasure in the way Robby jumped or stared at him with big eyes. It had become obvious that he got Johnny's self-destructive streak, even if Shannon had molded that into a helpful veneer of their son feeling he'd never given enough to himself; if Bobby was to be believed.
“I don't want to make you stop,” He warned, “But if you're willing to hurt yourself to get out of there-”
“No, no.” Robby denied it, both hands going up in surrender much more enthusiastically, “It's really not that dramatic… It never has been.”
That was fair.
His kid did love LaRusso. He was just outgrowing him for now. Johnny was sure they'd come back around.
And Miguel didn't seem quite ready for the discipline required from crane to be completely honest. He was trying. Just really bored in lessons instead of truly sitting in them for retention.
Robby perked up, “Mom's home.”
Johnny and Miguel still met confused glances. Just a minute later though, the front door opened and sure enough Carmen Lawrence was announcing herself. Both shook their heads in unison.
“That is terrifying.”
“Start calling you ‘Radar’.”
“I love M*A*S*H!”
He seemed to love all the old shows that ran in syndication. Even his childish interests were dated, like Scooby Doo and Looney Tunes compared to the new stuff Miggy was constantly getting Johnny to watch.
August began and school shopping came upon them quickly, before his boys were fully dedicating themselves to enjoying the last two weeks of summer. Despite his worry, Carmen had his son shopping like a pro after one day; he surprisingly knew how to dress well from watching Barnes when he was little and she loved the teen’s sense of style as he got comfortable enough to express it more often. They really bonded the whole day and Johnny didn't realize he breathed easier at seeing that connection blossom until he was left to twiddle relieved thumbs with Miguel in a mall dressing room.
Yes, Robby had taken to calling her mom when Miguel started using dad for him, but to everyone's ears it rang a bit hollow in comparison. Seeing them really connect encouraged him that Bobby was right and he just needed to let it happen. Time was all the whole family needed.
When his son disappeared for two weeks into his bedroom with his school books it scared the hell out of them. To say he holed up was an understatement, even when alarms were set so he never missed a meal, lesson with Danny, or attending classes. After a week the women made him go busting into the room concerned by the way Robby had suddenly cut himself off from all of them, unsure what had gone wrong or why he wasn't talking to anyone despite inquiries for his well being when he came in for food.
Johnny knocked like he usually did, but there was no answer, so he just entered. Carmen and Rosa were right behind him, because they were more freaked out than him at the sudden change.
Movement caused cat eyes to flick up from a textbook, off to the sides of which were a notebook and laptop respectively. An earbud instantly popped out and a second set was charging for rotation plugged into the computer, “My bad. What's up?”
“Robby, are you okay?” He tried to probe gently.
“Yeah?” Glancing over his father's shoulder, it seemed to process something was wrong. “Did I do something?”
“Well…” Johnny was thinking about how to frame their perspective.
“You have sort of disappeared all week, sweetie,” Carmen offered. “And haven't really shared why.”
“Oh.”
“Did things get worse with lessons?” He wondered, stepping into the room.
“No, no. I'm just completing all my stuff for the year!” Robby clarified, looking down at the book and over to the smaller stack unfinished, then his completed piles on the desk. “For school! I guess… No one's ever noticed before.”
His wife gasped, crossing to the desk, “You do not have to do all this!”
“That's all done. It's not that bad.” Robby shrugged, “I'll be done this time next week!”
Sure enough, his sophomore year was completed by the end of the next weekend. He'd done it that way since losing Dutch, because he'd been bored at Shannon's. It was so effective, however, Robby decided to stay the course now too.
Miguel was horrified.
He couldn't believe how fast Robby was flying through learning his crane mastery too. That boy was barreling past the next trial before Danny even told him what to expect, because he'd done this before. He'd only slowed down just a bit here at the end as they got into the specific crane skills, marking him as exceptionally gifted. The grown men were both realizing that Toguchi and Barnes gave him one hell of a foundation.
Johnny watched from his place leading generic lessons with the tiny tots now joining Miyagi-Do classes every morning, trying to remember that this wouldn't last much longer. Something he was going to have to confront, because Danny hadn't gotten any better about listening to him. As time melted away and school started, he was learning to manage a family and this job, bearing the growing pains of a wife, two teenage boys, and a new mother in law with a grin, because the Champ never imagined he'd have it all. Sensei wasn't letting him forget the countdown was on however, since he wasn’t joking about wanting back into retirement as September was gone before they knew it and October was not slowing down. At the halfway mark there was no more putting it off.
The twins had started classes and tolerated him being Sensei Lawrence in the dojo really well, so long as they got a hug and kiss reestablishing that he was Uncle Johnny again before they left with Jen or their dads. He sent them off with a reminder that he could easily make Robby take them to class, so she wasn't inconvenienced. His son piled on in agreement following them out from his solo lessons.
As classes melted by, soon he was watching Robby pick Miguel and Sam up, Tory and Hawk already in his car, and Johnny smiled as the Acura pulled away. Demetri would have probably joined like a clown car, if they could have squeezed in, but made for his parents’ vehicle instead. Maybe the boy needed his Mercedes and the Champ should be driving the Acura, since his oldest was so popular.
This was their only joint class, but cleaning everything had become their chance to catch up on the day. Danny was on cloud nine as he confessed, “He's done, Johnny! Can you believe it? His first mastery!”
Finished with his section and deciding to shower at home, it seemed time to rip off that bandaid, “Danny, this isn't his first mastery.”
He popped up from finishing, “...Oh, I guess he could probably go through the paces for cobr-”
“No, Robby never studied under me. You know that,” Johnny reminded tersely.
They hadn't been lying to him. Daniel LaRusso just assumed more than anyone else on this freaking planet. And neither of them shared without someone's genuine interest.
“I don't understand.”
“Have you booked your flight to Japan?”
“I'm leaving in two days.”
“Robby hasn't been earning his first mastery, he's just wanted you to leave early.”
“What?” Danny still didn't understand, “Why?”
“You know he studied under Toguchi. What you don't seem to realize is that he and Dutch raised Robby.” He gritted his teeth and admonished himself, “Shannon and I were equally useless back then.”
“Oh.”
“Danny, he could have gone for a monkey mastery at ten.” He really sought to preserve their relationship in what he was trying to say, “Maybe he's also finished so early, because you didn't put him back in class like I told you to this summer.”
Chocolate eyes were caught off guard.
“If he'd been here with Miguel and Sam, maybe he wouldn't have started going by Cobra Kai.” He shrugged the reveal off, “We'll never know.”
“Johnny-”
“I'm going to buy her back, so Sensei can retire.”
“No, no!” LaRusso cursed, “I fucked up, but-”
“Danny, I want to go back. I miss my kids and I can pick up Eagle Claw teaching a style much more natural to me.”
“Johnny…” He was clearly just in his own head for a moment and it was dark out now, so he just started out into it.
Taking a seat on the bench and patting it to invite him over, Johnny wasn't trying to say they hadn't partaken in some good times in the last couple months. “Toguchi might be willing to manage this place for you. Ask.”
He nodded, but when he finally looked up from the floor sincerity burned brightly in dark eyes, “I had those kids out there fighting with no sense of identity last year and all that's built up now is because I was watching you.”
“Danny-”
“No, just let me say this.” He thought about what he wanted to articulate for a moment. “I wasn't raised to own a dojo. Making this place as a tribute was something I needed for me, but it became more when Robby came through that door, then you.”
That meant a lot to him. It would mean a lot to Robby.
“Johnny, even if I'm not running this place full time, I don't want to stop learning all that you know about doing this as a true way of life.” Biting his lip for a moment, his study of the Champ seemed to be insecurity, and he'd more than earned that in his youth. “What if you bought out this place as part of a franchise?”
“What?”
“It's what we were talking about doing, but we've already got two dojos, if we merge Miyagi-Do with Cobra Kai.” Thinking of making the sale practical, he took a shot, “It's then more realistic to say we could give Chozen a dojo of his own with a year, maybe two.”
“Danny, are you sure that's what you want?”
“Yes.” He gulped, “Change the name to Crane Kai or whatever.”
Shaking his head, Johnny promised, “Miyagi Kai, maybe. I know why you made this place though. I would never disrespect that.”
“Could I be your branch that doesn't compete?”
Knowing that was an extension of paying tribute to the man who raised Danny, it was easy to agree. He wound up keeping the news to himself, because he couldn't believe it even as they hugged. Even as the brunet sent him the inverted contracts and promised to meet him at his financial manager’s place the next morning to sign. All the kids were going to join him at Cobra Kai while the crane master went to Japan.
The next morning was a Wednesday and Joseph was more than happy to come in early when he'd been begging Johnny to do something with his life and his stepfather's money for years. He and Ma had seen each other socially after the old boy died and he'd always had a soft spot for the Champ, so tried to look out for Johnny. An attorney and accountant, he managed a handful of clients and lived handsomely from their tribute.
They hugged and he realized the man had been missed that decade spent in the gutter. “How have you been, Joe?”
“I just could not be more proud of you,” He grinned for a moment, before turning serious, “Although… We said we were done spending for a while after the family car?”
Johnny knew that adding two dojos was going to get him into trouble, “I know. I genuinely was not expecting this to become a thing.”
“When opportunity knocks,” He shrugged. “Truthfully, you can more than afford it. Especially when these are not simple expenses and you've proven nothing but lucrative in the endeavor. I just don't want you to think it will last forever, if you keep going at this rate.”
Johnny scoffed, “Joe, I feel like I'm in a circus on a tightrope balancing all this.”
“Families and careers will do that.”
They grinned at one another.
Then the elevator rang down the hall from his office with who had to be Danny coming to meet them this early. He walked in with John Kreese creating one of the oddest things seen in this lifetime, but by the time both took a seat to either side of him, Joseph was all business. Contracts were signed and Johnny agreed to place the orders for signs rebranding the crane dojo as part of his franchise, while an investment account was created for the future Monkey Kai and Toguchi’s potential contract approved, then sent with LaRusso to Okinawa.
Somehow when it was all over, all they all did was go teach class, but he was on cloud nine all day. Robby was put through the proper paces by a crane inspector that morning before school and, when declared proficient, both of them were having the best day. But the routine didn't change after he left for school, Johnny not seeing him again until after joint class ended and everyone was picked up. This time he did tell his son to take the Mercedes as he left right behind them with Danny; it was raining and Demetri’s mother was late as they swapped keys with a kiss. Grateful masses shouted they were going to dinner together, so he just headed home alone.
Getting home to Carmen first, Rosa was spending more and more time at Kreese's new apartment to help him get set up, and he just couldn't contain himself anymore, “I'm a chain!”
She popped up from finishing a new dress at the kitchen table, “Huh?”
Paperwork in hand, Johnny sat at the table spinning his tale, and he scooped her up when it was all out.
Carmen couldn't be more excited for him.
“Let's go out!”
“Where?” She asked first, then, “What about the boys?”
“The kids went out to dinner. We can go anywhere you want!”
He thought she'd name a new restaurant that Johnny knew she had her eye on, so that new dress got some use. She'd had a full shift and just wanted to avoid heels was the explanation as rain disappeared quickly in Cali, leading them to go play on the boardwalk. They'd been walking for a couple of hours when his wife seemed to burst, “I lied!”
“Huh?” He quizzed cluelessly.
She was biting her lip under the neon lights when he turned around. Utterly adorable, “I talked so much about trying their drink menu and you were gonna notice, if I didn't. But, I can't right now, then I realized this was like lying to you, even though I swear I was just waiting, because it's only been like three days and anything can throw it for that much. The wind could have blown wrong, Johnny. And-”
The truth was that it was the ramble he recognized more than any of the context clues in her little speech. Shannon had gone on just like that when trying to tell him that Robby was incoming.
“Mamacita,” He cut her off, “Are you?”
“Maybe.”
Every boardwalk had a couple of convenient stores and it was no trouble dragging her into one. They bought an early test, then had a fight when he insisted that she get three of those and of the regular kind.
“They are gonna think I'm some kinda fiend!”
Johnny laughed where he was carrying all seven up to the counter, “We are married. Not fighting it. And I don't wanna come back here every other week.”
“Johnny!”
“Carmen!” He teased her, putting them down on the counter, “No one gives a shit.”
Their disagreement was broken up by a small hoard loudly entering the store. As luck would have it, of course it was their hoard. And all the other kids didn't even notice, but Johnny's oldest was like a radar, “Guess the other way around would be a lot more awkward.”
“Not even close to funny,” Johnny insisted.
It was fun playing games for prizes and getting food from every vendor though. After they ran into the kids, of course he put it in the Cobra chat for the extended family to come join them, then he told Danny the same thing. Although they had a great night and sent Dutch a ton of pictures once everyone was there together, Johnny also made a ‘Kai Karate Senseis' group chat and hoped it would be filled with those worthy of the title.
…
LaRusso left for his pilgrimage to Okinawa, Japan and watching Johnny absorb all the kids into Cobra Kai for a while made for an interesting couple of months before the holiday break. Even Sam had a great time there, now it wasn't a competition to which she felt obliged toward taking her father's side. He enjoyed seeing his best friend in his element once more on the days the twins were his to pick up. Bobby even made it a point to come see his godson spar a couple of times, because he'd been invited and the pastor refused to let him think they only cared when an award was on the line.
The best part was seeing Robby almost burst as he took to learning from the Champ and Kreese. The Founding Snake agreed to stay on part time until LaRusso and Toguchi made it back, so Johnny wasn't strapped in completely with more kids than any one person could truly handle. Surprisingly, the older man seemed very aware of fighting for his place in their lives now and would not allow himself to be shut out.
When he went by there and listened to the excited ramblings of a teenager begging to learn very specific things from their youth, moments he'd obviously seen repeatedly growing up with Dutch and watching footage, it brought tears to the man of faith's eyes. All he'd wanted was to be a cobra and everyone just scattered to the wind. He wound up going out to Tommy's grave to talk about it; how they had their own little groupie and hadn't even known it. That he wasn't here to meet Robby sucked. And sitting in those feelings was painful for a while.
It was cute to watch the kids embrace being a cobra for a while, even if he didn't think some of the cranes realized it might be more permanent for the Lawrence boys then they were advertising right now. No reason to rock the boat seemed to be their silent agreement, even as Miguel shared Johnny's old jacket, only for the day to come everyone realized it was too small for the Red Viper. Everyone was really proud of Robby and rushed to find the nearest scale in Johnny's office as their next weigh in wasn't supposed to be until Halloween.
When Robby's gang busted in from the showers, the girls having caught commotion and followed, Bobby watched from his perch on Johnny's desk chatting as they all cheered his nephew being up to a buck forty-five. It only took a single strike for the blond to burst their enthusiastic little bubbles, reminding that one pound rendered him unqualified again. With one month left, this meant the last thing Robby could afford was to get lazy now.
All the kids called him a spoiling sport, but broke up for the weekend. He sighed, watching them go, “I despise being the bad guy.”
“Welcome to parenthood,” Bobby muttered.
“I gotta do something with them that's not karate.”
“They having problems?”
“No,” Johnny denied, “But Miguel's got his car now. They're both sixteen… Carmen said something about that being our whole relationship.”
“Hmm…” He knew grandeur was the Champ's typical style, “Why don't we start small?”
“Like what?”
So, he suggested a family binge day. They brought the twins over to Johnny's to watch animated movies without martial arts, because that was the only category. No karate and family friendly.
His boys picked the movie to start off their morning as breakfast items littered the room and Miguel got company in the Moon Pods on the floor he'd convinced Johnny to invest in down here. Finding Nemo started them off as Bobby cuddled into his husband on most of the sectional, although Robby had squeezed on with them at the end under his green microfiber blanket. Johnny watched one movie bleed into a sequel with Carmen in his lap and Sensei mirroring his with Rosa across the room.
Dory was just making her big speech to the octopus when Robby's phone sounded off. The boys booed him and Johnny paused the film, “Make it quick.”
“Right,” His son promised, already halfway to answering, “Hello?”
When he shot up plank-straight in his seat, of course all the men in the room took notice. The women and other kids were faced away from him, but not them.
“H-hey. Shit, hay is for horses,” He muttered, quickly correcting himself, punching the bridge of his nose. “Hi.”
Bobby felt it more than he otherwise saw it when Jimmy and Johnny locked eyes over his head. He was zeroed in on listening though. It wasn't hard to pick up a bass on the other end.
“Much better… You alright?”
“Yeah,” Robby offered right away. Seemed like he came back to himself right then and quickly made excuses. “Umm… You guys go ahead. I'll be back later.”
To say he scrambled up those stairs after clearing all three bean bags was an understatement. It was only honest to say that Johnny didn't seem keen to share his innermost thoughts as he just restarted the movie, even if his gaze lingered on the stairs, but Bobby couldn't just sit there. He gave it half an hour, but then made an excuse to go get the stuff for mimosas as Miguel tried to pick their next movie.
Carmen hurried up with him, “Could you hear anything?”
“It was Barnes,” He confirmed. “All he had time to do was praise him for correcting himself and ask if Robby was okay.”
“Really? He's gonna scold him for saying ‘hey’?”
Bobby shrugged, “I'm trying to break the boys from it.”
“I wish that was Miguel’s only infraction.”
They both corked it as they got to the top of the stairs, what had already been a quiet discussion stopping completely as they realized the kitchen wasn't empty. Freezing in the doorway, neither could resist listening to the teenager and his idol on the phone, since he hadn't gone to hole up in his room as they expected.
“...ure you're alright?” The woman's voice was not who they expected either.
His godson giggled, “I'm fine, Mummy. Really. Dad's looking after me.”
“Good. Because, we could skip the race and get on a plane-”
“The hell you say,” Robby teased, “I expect Mikey to smoke everyone!”
“That's right!” A man shouted and that had to be Barnes.
“Alright, then.” The woman wasn't Shannon, but he remembered the implication made a while back that Barnes had already been married when they were dating. “I'm going to put him back on. I love you so much, sweetheart!”
“I love you too!”
The Bad Boy of Karate came back front and center onto the line, “You sure you don't want us to come get you?”
So, both were offering him an out.
Said a lot about the situation they assumed he was in. Johnny hadn't been in a good place, but he wouldn't have ever hurt Robby. Given their boy hadn't known that, what was the likelihood that the couple Shannon dated didn't either?
Robby laughed, “I'm fine, Mikey. I promise.”
“Good.”
“When are you and Mummy coming back?”
“Race is tomorrow.”
“Send me the link?”
“Sure. You can text and call me?”
“Yep,” Robby promised.
Barnes finally seemed to accept it, “Fine. We'll be home next Saturday. Come over.” He gulped clear enough that both of the other adults could hear it before instructing, “Bring your dad.”
“Okay!” He agreed.
“I love you, kitten.”
“Love you too, Dad. Good luck!”
His heart should not be thundering between his ears somewhere. It's just… Johnny told them.
That was the worst part.
He said it; that Robby thought Mike Barnes was his dad until he turned ten. Bobby just hadn't wanted to hear him when it was said and his refusal to process the Champ's upset was about to come back for a bite.
Robby was hanging up without realizing they were there. He'd clearly said it to remind Barnes they were in this together despite Johnny.
Carmen dismissed herself to go and get Blondie, while the pastor moved in hoping to hold him at the kitchen until the Champ could get there. “How was Barnes?”
“He's fine.” Those were the words out of his mouth, but his face beheld that grin. The really specific one that foretold who he was texting.
“Just gotta tell Uncle Dutch?”
“I always thought of the Glory Ring as his gang after high school,” Robby confessed. “Who Uncle Dutch evolved into when he grew up; they're best friends.”
“The better fighters then,” Bobby noted, getting out a tray, orange juice, and chilled champagne he suspected all the men would need by the end of this, but in a format they could sneak past Rosa and Carmen, “And Barnes was the best of them?”
Emerald eyes studied him suddenly, phone abandoned, “Might be hard for you to believe, but there was no competition.”
“Really?”
“I wanted to be a cobra my entire life!” He spit out and glared at the picture over his shoulder on Johnny's refrigerator. “I wanted to be part of the gang. Not getting to be wasn't my choice.”
“No,” Bobby recognized, “It wasn't.”
Muttering, he looked at a new text on his phone, “I doubt Dad even knows why that stupid picture was important to begin with.”
“Then why don't you tell me?”
He jumped six inches off his seat and flipped around as Robby realized that his father had come up. The Champ wasn't alone either.
Sensei came over and plucked Robby's phone held limply in-hand as father and son stared one another down. He wondered from the barstool next to the teenager, “What’s Miglia di Maserati?”
Instantly he spun to his other side and the grin on his face was blinding. Bobby not only saw it as he started rambling, but the younger man watched as Johnny saw it. The Champ's jaw clenched.
“It's a private sector race in Italy for the shareholders of Maserati. They all put their favorite customs into the mix and fight to the death over the best drivers.”
“What's Barnes running?”
“That asshole wouldn't tell me,” Robby was laughing even as he said it.
“Who's his driver?”
Johnny's son snorted so hard it had to hurt, “Mike drives for himself. He's taken her several years too!”
Bobby raised a hand subtly telling his friend to relax, cutting him a look when the Champ finally acknowledged him. Getting angry or defensive wasn't the answer. Seeing him take a deep breath before coming into the kitchen to grab that picture, the pastor felt better.
Johnny turned around and placed it on the counter between them. Robby came back to the topic apprehensively, “Kid… I know he raised you. I know you love him. And I know it's no one's fault except mine that I wasn't around.” He gulped as they stared each other down across the counter, “I'm not your mom and I won't try to keep you from him. I'd just like to not be shut out because he called.”
Slowly, his son nodded, Robby sharing, “He's got to be back next Saturday. He wanted us to come over… Will you?”
“Sure,” Johnny agreed.
Brightening again with a grin, the teenager offered before disappearing back into his phone, “Cool.”
His best friend did seem to hate playing the bad guy, but he still pushed the picture closer to Robby, “We're not done yet.”
Green eyes flicked to the drawing, then rolled, “Forget it. Doesn't even matter now.”
“The hell it doesn't. Robby,” Blue eyes just looked so determined, “You can tell me anything. If you want to yell or curse me, fine. I can take a hit, but I'm gonna get the truth.”
It seemed to strike that there would be no binge day return until this was figured out and Bobby really was grateful he wasn't as bull headed as his daddy all the damn time. Abandoning that device for his historic artwork, grass colored irises studied it before crumpling into his hands, “You're going to think I'm the worst son on the planet.”
“Never going to happen.”
Robby scoffed, “Alright.”
There was no need for the dripping sarcasm.
“I was barely three years old the first time I wandered to Uncle Dutch's apartment alone, but it was only a few months after that when the fights came around for the first time I can remember.” He spun his tale easily once he started though. “He tucked me in at Mom's Friday night and I remember him promising a million times at my insistence that he'd be back Monday with the sun. It was not optional. I opened my eyes and he was supposed to be there.”
Bobby chuckled imagining that adorable toddler. He should have been there.
Robby shrugged, “Saturday was fine until Mom fed me and went out for the night. I don't know what she was tweaking on when she came back, but it was bad. Actually, to be honest, it was the most fucked up I ever saw her.”
That was terrifying.
Bobby wanted to do something and was grateful when his old mentor reached out to squeeze the boy’s shoulder across the counter between them. Robby just barreled on, “By the time he got back, I hadn't slept in forty eight hours, and beyond being hungry and dirty, more than anything in the world I just wanted her to be quiet. She hadn't stopped screeching since coming in the door…” Robby pushed the stupid drawing away, “I remember wrapping around his neck like a monkey, gripping his hair as hard as I could, because I was terrified he'd leave again, and telling him what I wanted, giving him the picture, and that was the first time I ever asked if he couldn't just get my dad.”
Johnny nodded slowly, “You meant Barnes though?”
“At the time; that's also the first Miglia I can remember. Uncle Dutch wouldn't realize for seven years.” Robby sighed remembering the worst crisis he ever had, “Mom got mad at Mike and told me he couldn't have kids.”
Even knowing it meant he hadn't even been missed, Johnny knew what it was like to have the father he'd loved erased from his life to the point he didn't even remember the man's name to find him, “I'm sorry she did that. I'm so sorry she separated you.”
Robby snubbed a bit, but didn't let himself cry. Bobby encouraged him to let it out, but just earned an eye roll from the teenager. “Anyway, he told me to go get my stuff to go to his place; I ran. When I can back up the hall…”
“What happened, kid?” Johnny made the demand.
“I was coming up the hall when Uncle Dutch clocked her as hard as he could when she started screaming about him being there. She went down, he put her on the sofa, covered her up with a blanket, and by then I'd taken the extra couple steps to get myself noticed.”
“Jesus Christ,” Bobby didn't know what else to say.
“I'd say I taught him better than that,” John Kreese noted, “But given the circumstances, I'm torn.”
Their collective child huffed again, “I remember him looking at me asking if I was ready to go and realizing he was trying to figure out if I saw when he said Mom had just fallen asleep.”
“What did you do?” Dutch’s father wanted to know.
He wasn't sure that he wanted an answer. This entire conversation was making Bobby's stomach roll.
“I lifted my arms to be picked up,” Robby confessed, head tilting as he drifted back to that moment, “And went to Uncle Dutch’s place. To this day we've never discussed it again and he doesn't know I saw. I just didn't care anymore.”
There it was though. Out in the open. Robby's first time being disappointed by Johnny had been taped to the fridge.
“I remember they got into it over me one time a couple of years later and her muttering he'd never actually hit her.” The kid chuckled darkly, “I remember thinking ‘You keep telling yourself that, sweetheart.’”
His skipper laughed, “God, you really could be my grandkid.”
When Johnny snickered too and they all settled into a sort of moment, he just couldn't join in. It wasn't really about what Dutch did. Extreme circumstances and he could see the hot head just facing it directly.
A bad thing done with every logic.
It was that the stories just kept piling up. In his head it had been obvious that Robby raised himself. Doing so had largely seemed hard enough to forge him into this mature and responsible kid that Bobby hadn't assumed greater traumas necessary.
He'd worked as a pastor around juvie. This was far from the worst story he heard. It was his godson though and all of it got to him.
Johnny clarified, coming around the counter for a hug, “Not one thing you said makes you a bad son.”
“Makes her a shitty mother,” Sensei growled.
Bobby didn't want to judge, but was fighting not to agree. Robby hugged his dad and was relieved to head back down the stairs with his grandfather, leaving the picture on the counter. The colored image Johnny was staring at with eagle eyes. Squeezing his shoulder closest, the cobra wasn't sure what to say or how to make it better.
“Can you go next week?”
“I wouldn't miss it for the world,” Bobby Brown promised.