❛ Follow my lead. ❜

     There was silence from the LaRussos as Ayane finished explaining what had happened between her and Miguel.

They were all in disbelief, hardly able to believe that Ayane would break up with Miguel. But that's what it sounded like had happened.

"Are you okay, honey?" Amanda asked as Ayane sat on the couch, walking over and sitting beside her. She put an arm around the girl, hugging her.

Ayane drew in a shaky breath. "I-I don't really know, honestly. I... I've been thinking about taking a break from karate, but I'm not really sure who I am without karate."

She looked up at Daniel and Sam standing there, then glanced back down.

"Ayane, you're more than welcome to stay here. Uh... we may have to move some people around now that Chozen's here, too, but–"

"Who is Chozen?" Ayane asked.

"Uh, he's an old friend," Daniel replied. "You'll get to meet him soon. Sam, do you wanna go set up the guest room?"

She nodded, giving Ayane a brief glance. Sam was not aware that her situation had been so serious when they talked on the phone earlier.

Daniel and Amanda stayed in the living room with Ayane, the girl's phone vibrating just then.

She looked down, seeing that Miguel was calling her. Amanda noticed it as well, waiting to see what Ayane would do.

The girl hit the decline button at once, putting her phone away and clearing her throat.

"I-I think I'm gonna head upstairs," she said at once, standing up. "Thank you guys, so much, for all of this. You have no idea how grateful I am."

Amanda stood as well, giving Ayane a smile. "Of course, honey. Go get some rest, you need it."

Ayane returned her smile weakly, looking over at Daniel.

"It's gonna be alright, kiddo," he assured, though he really was not that sure.

She went upstairs to the guest bedroom, which had been her room at one point. Sam was in there, making the bed.

Looking up as Ayane entered, Sam gave her a small smile.

"Hey."

"Hi," Ayane greeted, setting her backpack down. "You– you don't have to make up the bed. You don't have to do all this."

Sam shrugged. "It's fine, really. You are like family, you know."

Ayane gave a soft laugh. "Thanks, Sam. I kinda missed being here with you guys."

"Yeah, me too," Sam nodded. She paused, filling the room with an awkward silence.

Sam wanted to ask what happened with Ayane and Miguel, but decided against it. Ayane seemed to be distressed enough as it was.

"Alright, well I'll leave you to it," Sam continued, Ayane running a hand through her hair.

"Yeah, thanks. I appreciate it, again."

Sam smiled, leaving the bedroom. Ayane went forward and shut the door, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

Her phone vibrated. She pulled it out of her pocket, seeing numerous texts from Miguel. Ayane read them, hearing Miguel's worry just from his messages.

But, she could not bring herself to reply. Ayane flung her phone on the bed, rubbing her eyes. She had a pounding headache from crying so much. Ayane did not think she had anymore energy left in her.

Walking over to the bed, she sat down and pulled off her shoes.

She sat there for a moment, simply staring into nothingness. Ayane chewed her lip, then got up again to go change into her sleep clothes.

Miguel had not texted or called anymore, which Ayane was thankful for. Every time his contact popped up she nearly started crying again.

The girl climbed into bed, cutting off the lights. Ayane laid there, staring up at the ceiling.

Ayane regretted leaving Cobra Kai. Her chest ached at the thought of Jae's hurt and confusion, wondering why she had abandoned him. She partly still saw him as a little three-year old boy, and then Ayane being told by her parents that Jae was not coming back.

He had been taken away from her, and then Ayane went and did it all over again.

All she wanted was to have her brother back.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The next morning, Ayane got up with one thing on her mind.

Checking her phone, she saw a missed call from Johnny. Ayane swallowed, contemplating whether or not to call back.

She chose to ignore it, getting out of bed and changing into her workout clothes. Ayane decided that she could clear her head by going to the gym, as that usually helped.

Leaving her bedroom, Ayane walked downstairs to find only Anthony LaRusso there.

"You're back?" he asked, sitting on the couch as Ayane walked through.

She gave a small shrugged. "For the time being. Just– had some things going on."

Anthony nodded a little, standing up. "Sam told me that you and Miguel broke up."

Ayane raised her eyebrows a little, blinking. "Uh... we're just taking a break."

Narrowing his eyes, Anthony replied, "So... you broke up?"

Ayane sighed. "It's complicated."

Anthony nodded slowly. "...Right. Well, I hope things get better."

She gave Anthony a timid smile, leaving the LaRusso's. Ayane got in her car, turning it on and hesitating.

Pulling out of the driveway, Ayane took the turn opposite of the gym. She drove not too far from the LaRusso's, seeing a building come into view.

The new Cobra Kai dojo was far different from the old one, the one that Ayane was used to. There were tons of cars parked outside, the girl raising her eyebrows. Class must have been in session.

Her heart was racing, but Ayane went through with it. She got out of her car, walking up to the entrance without a second thought.

If she thought about it too much, she would back out.

Ayane went inside. As she entered the dojo, heads began to turn. Some of the conversations fell silent, Ayane seeing dozens of kids in the dojo.

The first person to approach her, a confused look on her face, was Tory.

"Ayane?" she frowned. "What are you doing here?"

Ayane licked her lips. "Uh– I... I need to talk to Silver."

Tory continued to frown, looking around for her sensei. "I-I can take you to him."

Nodding, Ayane followed Tory. She noticed Devon as she walked through the dojo, knitting her brows with confusion. Devon returned her look, Ayane glancing away.

Tory stopped at a door, giving a knock. She looked over at Ayane, her expression unreadable.

"Good luck."

Tory walked away at that, leaving Ayane there. The door opened, Terry beginning to smile as he saw her there.

"Ayane. What a pleasant surprise," he remarked, placing his thumbs on his belt.

"I need to talk to you," she quickly replied, pushing past him and entering what she presumed to be his office.

Silver followed, shutting the door behind him.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Miss Cain?" he asked, walking around to take a seat at his desk.

Ayane crossed her arms, glancing to the side.

"What happened to my brother?"

Silver smiled slowly. "I told you. I sent him back to South Korea. Why do you ask?"

Ayane was having a mental battle with herself, trying to decide if this was the right thing to do. She tapped her foot, inhaling slowly.

"And what if I join Cobra Kai again?"

Terry did not bother to hold back his smile, raising his hands. "Then Kwon comes back."

Her breath hitched a little, Ayane blinking a few times. This was her chance to have Jae back. To have family that actually cared about her.

Ayane began to nod, finally meeting Silver's eyes.

"Alright. Give me a gi, then."

With a grin, Terry stood up and approached the girl. "It's good to have you back, Ayane. Once you get changed, there's someone else I'd like you to meet."

He walked out of his office, Ayane following and wondering what the hell he meant. Silver personally grabbed her a black Cobra Kai gi, the emblem in red on the back. Ayane stared down at it as he handed it over to her, letting out a breath.

After changing in the locker room, Ayane walked back out to see that more students had their eyes on her. They knew who she was. Ayane wished they didn't.

"Class, fall in. I have an important announcement to make," Silver made his way to the front, Ayane falling into line at the very back.

Tory turned, looking at her. Ayane glanced back, then broke eye contact. She didn't want to have to explain herself.

"We have a returning member," Silver announced, everyone already knowing who he was talking about. "Likely the reason why you're all here. Everyone, give Miss Ayane Cain a warm welcome."

They all turned to her, clapping for her as she stood there. Silver was really making it known that she was a Cobra Kai once more.

"Miss Cain, join me at the front, won't you?" he continued, Ayane bringing her head up to him.

She glanced around the room, seeing Vincent, Kenny and Kyler on one side of her, Tory and Devon on the other. Ayane made her way up to the front at once, turning to face all of the students.

"The world is made up of two kinds of people. Leaders and followers. Miss Cain here is a clear leader. That's how she got to the top. It's how she won. Cobra Kai, like a military unit, needs both to function successfully. So... we're gonna divide you up into pairs."

"The goal of each pair is to score a point against an opponent who outmatches you," a woman's voice spoke, Ayane turning her head to the right to see a woman standing there.

She frowned, not recognizing the woman. Was she a new sensei?

"Only strong leadership will allow you to prevail," the woman continued, looking over at Ayane as she spoke.

"Sensei Kim will take the girls," Silver instructed. "Boys, you'll stay here and spar with Sensei Odell. Alright, split up."

Everyone did just that without hesitation, except Ayane. She eyed the woman, approaching her slowly.

Sensei Kim gave Ayane a calculating smile. "Ayane Cain. I've heard a lot about you. I am your brother's sensei, also."

Her face changed at that, Ayane giving a small shake of her head. "Sorry– you're from Tang Soo Do?"

Kim nodded, sizing up Ayane. "I am. Kwon fights just like you, from what I hear."

Ayane gave a small shrug at once, still taken by surprise at this information.

They all took seats around the mat at once, Ayane hesitating before she sat down beside Tory.

Looking over, Tory furrowed her eyebrows. "Hey," she nudged her with her elbow, "what in the hell are you doing?"

Ayane clenched her jaw, looking straight forward as Silver called up Kenny and Kyler to take on Sensei Odell.

After not giving her an answer, Tory looked straight ahead. Ayane was making a big mistake.

Kenny and Kyler were clearly struggling against Odell, both taking hits from him. Kyler seemed to be giving all the instructions to Kenny, who was doing all of the work. It was not panning out like they had anticipated.

"Alright, enough," Terry intervened, "sit down."

At once, Sensei Kim stepped on the mat. Ayane was already preparing for her name to be called, but surprisingly, it wasn't.

"Lee, Nichols," Kim picked, the two girls standing up and bowing before stepping on the mat.

"Fighting stance," Kim instructed. "Ais!"

Both girls went forward, clashing with each other as Kim easily struck them both. Devon pushed Tory out of the way, trying to take her on herself. Ayane grimaced, watching Devon get kicked to the ground with ease.

Tory attempted to strike, but Kim was very quick. She struck Tory across the face, Ayane raising her eyebrows.

After some bickering between Tory and Devon, the made another attempt. The girls backed into each other, Kim taking both of them by their wrists and flipping them over onto the ground.

Devon groaned on the ground, Kim laughing.

"What was that sound? Was that pain?" she scoffed. "Pain does not exist. Get off the mat."

The two girls obliged, taking their seats once more.

"Cain."

Ayane looked up as Sensei Kim called her name, but no one else's name. She frowned, standing up but shaking her head.

"I-I don't understand–"

"Show them a real leader looks like, Cain," Sensei Kim interjected, assuming her fighting stance.

Ayane was taken off guard by this, but she got into her fighting stance nonetheless. Why had Kim singled her out?

"Ais!" Silver spoke for them, Ayane having been distracted.

Sensei Kim came forward quickly, putting a kick toward Ayane that she barely blocked. Ayane defended against Kim's very strong and fast kicks, landing one to Ayane's side. The girl groaned a little at the pain, shaking it off.

Kim threw a strike toward her head, Ayane ducking and parrying it with a strike back. She and Kim went back and forth with very quick movements, but Sensei Kim was quicker. She landed a hit to Ayane's stomach, causing her to double over. Sensei Kim grabbed hold of Ayane's arm, sweeping her feet from under her and sending her to the ground.

"Quickly," Kim said as she had Ayane in a hold, "choose someone to tag in."

Ayane could not move under Kim's hold, her foot on her throat and her wrist in her hand.

The girl tried to think of everyone, blurting out the first name that came to mind.

"Vincent," she choked out, the boy blinking. He jumped up, hurrying in and throwing a kick at Sensei Kim.

She blocked it, letting Ayane go as the girl scrambled to her feet. Vincent shuffled to where Ayane stood, taking his place beside her.

Ayane looked over at him, catching her breath.

Vincent gave her a curt nod, signifying that he was waiting for her command.

Ayane turned her head to Sensei Kim, bringing her fists up.

"Follow my lead."

Notes.
awwww shit, here we go again

just keep in mind that ayane is doing this for her brother!! as for her and miguel, they'll be aight but she gotta put her first rn

so i'm terrified to write the end of this season, but it is for the plot!! it's gonna be sooo good (y'all will hate me)

what do you think of ayane joining cobra kai again?