Eagle Fang and Miyagi-Do met at Cobra Kai's new and improved dojo the next day. Molly decided to ride with Miguel and Johnny and when she walked into the dojo, all the different colored gis from the three teams reminded Molly of the All Valley.

"We'll begin with the boys. We have invited a local referee to ensure impartiality. First to three points wins." The main Sekai Taikai sponsor explained and the sensei's nodded.

Everyone started to walked towards the mat. As Eli waited to be called up, Molly smiled at him, grabbing his hand and squeezing it tight to make him look to her. "You've got this." She whispered and Eli smiled down at Molly as she leaned up to kiss his cheek.

But just at the last second, Eli turned his head so his lips met Mollys. She felt him smirk into the kiss and even though her eyes were closed, Molly wanted to roll her eyes as she held back her own smile.

"Eli Moskowitz and Kenny Payne, please take the mat." The referee announced. Eli pulled away from Molly, walking onto the mat and meeting Kenny in the middle. They faced the referee and bowed then faced each other and bowed again.

"Ready?" The referee asked as Eli and Kenny got into position.

"Fight!"

Kenny made the first move, jumping towards Eli to kick him in the stomach, but Eli dodged it, moving out of the way. Kenny barely landed his kick before he turned around and started to throw punch after punch to Eli.

As Eli spent his time trying to block Kenny from punching him, Kenny raised his foot and kicked him in the stomach.

Molly nervously bit her lip as Cobra Kai cheered across the mat. "Point! 1-0, Payne." The referee yelled as the boys went back into their fighting stance.

"Ready? Fight!"

This time, Eli made all of the first move and ran at Kenny with kicks and punches the boy had no time to block. When Eli ended up kicking Kenny, all of Miyagi-Do and Eagle Fang cheered.

The ref turned to the excited team and shook his head. "Out of bounds. No point."

Molly unashamedly looked at the referee as if he had three heads as Eli scoffed from the mat.

"What, are you serious?" Eli yelled.

Johnny stepped forward to be closer to the referee and Daniel had to hold him back. "Ref, that's horseshit. He made contact in bounds!" Johnny screamed, but the referee ignored him.

"Ready? Fight!"

Molly was starting to get tense. Between her and Sam next to her, the two of them were holding their breaths in suspense so much, it was starting to freak out Miguel.

When Eli went to kick Kenny's side, Kenny grabbed onto Eli's leg, twisted it, and then rammed his elbow into the back of Eli's knee.

Eli screamed in pain as he fell to the floor and Molly's hand flew to her mouth as her stomach sank.

The referee waved his hands around. "Illegal strike. That's a warning." He yelled, making Daniel scoff.

"Warning? He should be disqualified!" Daniel screamed and Eli quickly turned back to his team, shaking his head. "It's fine. He just caught me off-guard." Eli tried to reassure, but Molly noticed how staggered his breathing was and didn't really believe him.

"Are you sure, Eli?" She asked and Eli turned to face Molly. Slowly, he started to smirk.

"No more Eli. It's time to uncage the Hawk." He said, his voice darker as he readjusted his mohawk and quickly leaned in for one more quick kiss.

When they pulled away, Hawk's smile was twice as big. "For good luck." He muttered so only Molly would hear him before he walked back to the center of the mat.

"Ready?" The referee asked as Molly started to bounce on her toes.

"Fight!"

Kenny punched Hawk in the center of his chest and Hawk froze as his hand shakily rose to his chest. Molly watched the back of his head with her eyebrows pulled together, wondering why he wasn't moving until he collapsed to the floor.

"Point! Payne." The referee yelled and even though all of Cobra Kai was cheering, Molly noticed Eli struggling to breathe.

Molly didn't waste a second to run onto the mat to check on him. "Eli!" She yelled, skidding on her knees once she reached him. Molly ignored the jolt of pain she felt shoot up her legs and only focused on Eli.

Johnny was quick to check on Eli too. When he reached him and Molly, Johnny gently tried to push Molly back and away from Eli.

"Preston, stand back." Johnny muttered and Molly scoffed, slapping Johnnys hands off of her and moving close to Eli again. "Stand back my ass!" She spat back, but Johnny knew she was just scared for Eli and didn't take her tone to heart.

"Hawk, what's wrong?" Johnny asked, he and Molly leaning close to the boy. Eli held onto his chest, barely able to lift his head.

"I can't... Can't... Can't breathe." He struggled out. Molly gently moved Eli's hand off of his chest and pressed her ear against it to hear his breathing.

"Where's the medic?" Johnny yelled, and the referee threw his hands into the air, turning to Kenny and the rest of Cobra Kai. "That's a forfeit. Winner, Payne." The referee yelled

As Cobra Kai cheered for their win, Molly lifted her head off of Eli's chest and turned to Johnny. "He got the wind knocked out of him." Molly reassured, her hand moving to Eli's shoulder to gently caress.

Johnny scoffed, watching the medic run over and check on Hawk. "I think I'll let the professionals tell me that." He snarked under his breath.

From the line of students barely a foot away, Robby heard Johnnys words and rolled his eyes. "Dad..." He warned, remembering his first All Valley when Molly fixed his dislocated shoulder. Robby knew that if anyone were to know what happened ed to Eli, it'd be Molly. She was
working to be an EMT after all.

Johnnys head snapped up to Robby, glaring back at him as the medic turned to Molly, nodding his head.

"The kid's right. Just got the wind knocked out of him." The medic said and Molly turned to look back at Johnny, her eyebrows raised and her lips quirked into an "I told you so" smirk that made Johnnys eyes roll.

Molly looked back down at Eli, moving her hand to cup his cheek when she noticed a single tear fell. "You're okay." She whispered as he continued to try and catch his breath.

"Look like you and your girlfriend have something in common." Kenny chuckled out, making the couple look up at him.

"You're both crybabies" He said, an evil grin on his face before it fell into a fake pout. Kenny raised his hand to his chest to mimic Eli and Molly and let out small fake cries.

As Cobra Kai laughed behind him, Molly clenched her jaw and turned away from the boy. She leaned closer to Eli and wrapped her arms around his shoulders to help him up.

"Ignore them Let's find you somewhere to sit down." Molly whispered softly and Eli weakly nodded. Molly stood up and held her hands out to help Eli up as Johnny spotted him, making sure he didn't lose any balance.

Johnny went to get Eli water while Molly carefully led him to the stairs to sit down. "There you go..." She whispered, holding both of his hands as she helped him slowly sit down. Once he was seated, Eli used all the strength he could muster up to pull Molly into the stairs with him.

Molly let out a small yelp at the action that slowly turned into a giggle. She gently rubbed Eli's back and Johnny came back over with water.

"We begin our girls' fight. Samantha LaRusso and Tory Nichols, please take the mat." The referee yelled.

Molly looked across the mat to Cobra Kai and her eyebrows immediately furrowed. "Wait, where's Tory?" Molly whispered more to herself than others, but Eli and Johnny both heard her.

Johnny and Eli both turned to Cobra Kai as Sensei Kim quietly reprimanded the students, asking where Tory was. When all of the kids shook their heads, Silver leaned toward Kim's ear and whispered something that made her straighten up.

Kim smiled, her eyes glancing over to Devon before she turned back to Silver. The man nodded as she spoke before he walked towards the judges.

When Sam saw Devon shakily step to the edge of the mat, she ran to the stairs where Molly, Eli, and Johnny were sitting. Sam didn't even say anything before she grabbed Molly's hand and pulled her out of her seat.

Molly let out a small yelp as her other hand—the one that was holding Eli's—got ripped out of the boys grasp. She caught her footing before she tripped over the stairs and looked at Sam with wide eyes.

"What the hell, Sam?" Molly whisper yelled, but Sam's smile didn't falter. She leaned closer to Molly and grabbed her other hand, squeezing both of them. "You be the one to fight."

"What? No! I can't do it." Molly said, ripping her hands out of Sam's grasp and taking a small step back.

Sam rolled her eyes, taking the step toward Molly to close the distance Molly just created. "You said you can't fight Tory." Sam said before she looked to Cobra Kai behind her and shook her head. "Tory's not here, Devon is. And if anyone knows how to fight Devon, it's the girl who helped train her." Sam gently poked her finger into Molly's shoulder for emphasis.

"LaRusso's got a point, Preston." Johnny called out from over Molly's shoulder. She quickly looked back at her sensei and boyfriend on the stairs before she turned back to Sam.

Sam raised her eyebrows, a big and hopeful smile on her face. "You can do this." She whispered.

Molly watched Sam for a few seconds, really trying to take her words into consideration. She looked to Cobra Kai over Sam's shoulder and watched as Devon nervously stretched. After a couple moments, Molly sighed.

"Okay, fine." She muttered and Sam's smile doubled in size. She let out a small, excited squeal, jumping to hug Molly.

While Sam ran to go tell her dad and the referee the change of plans, Molly took a deep breath. She turned to face Johnny and Eli on the stairs and saw both of them not even have an inch of worry on their faces.

Molly fiddled with her fingers, watching the two of them nervousness. "You guys think I should do this?" She asked and immediately, Johnny scoffed, nodding his head. "Hell yeah! You were chosen to do this in the first place." Johnny said and Eli reached out to grab Molly's hand.

He pulled her closer—back toward him, and smiled up at her since she was standing now.

"You've got this." He whispered, tugging on Molly's hand to pull her down. Eli pushed himself up as Molly moved down, kissing her lips.

"Ew. Not in front of me, please!" Johnny yelled, gagging to himself. Eli and Molly pulled away, their laughter breaking their kiss.

As their laughter died down, Eli watched Molly. His face softened when he noticed the way her nose twitched when she was nervous. Eli's hand found hers without even having to look and when Molly turned to him, Eli smiled. "Good luck." He whispered, squeezing Molly's hand once more so he wouldn't kiss her in front of Johnny. Molly smiled, squeezing Eli's hand back quickly before she let go and walked to the mat.

"It seems that there has been a change. Will Devon Lee and Molly Preston please take the mat." The referee yelled and Molly trilled her lips to try and get rid of some of her nerves. When she felt someone come up beside her, Molly turned her head and locked eyes with Daniel.

"You have to be careful out there. They're fighting dirty." Daniel whispered and Molly scoffed under her breath, looking behind Daniel to Cobra Kai. "Yeah, when aren't they?" She muttered, earning a glare from Daniel.

When she didn't get a response, Molly turned back to her sensei and quickly ran her hands down her Eagle Fang gi and cleared her throat when she realized he didn't approve of her comment.

"Sorry." She whispered like a kid in trouble. Daniel chuckled, knowing he'd definitely said worse about past opponents. When his laughter died down, Daniel nodded and rubbed Molly's shoulder reassuringly.

"It's alright." He said as he gently pushed Molly forward to lead her onto the mat.

Molly smiled at Devon as the two girls met in the middle and Devon relaxed at the gesture.

They bowed to the referee before facing each other and bowing again. Molly took a deep breath, kicking her feet and shaking them before she got into her fighting stance.

"Ready? Fight!"

Just like Sam said, Molly knew how Devon fought and Molly knew Devon never held her guard up great at the start of fights so without wasting a second, Molly raised her foot and kicked Devon in the stomach.

"Point. 1-0, Preston."

Molly licked her teeth to stop herself from smiling had to hold back a smile as her team cheered from behind her. She got back into her position and Devon, a little frazzled, followed after.

"Ready? Fight!"

Devon made the first move for Molly, letting out a battle cry as she raised her leg to kick Molly's head.

Wither underestimated how high she could kick or how tall Molly really was because her foot only made it high enough to hit Molly's shoulder.

Devon groaned and Molly let out a small breath over the fact that Devon missed her target and kicked Molly in a spot that wouldn't earn Devon any points. Yet somehow, the referee raised his left hand toward Cobra Kai and yelled, "Point. 1-1, Lee!"

Molly and Devon's heads snapped to the man, both of their eyes wide and Molly's jaw dropped. Slowly, Molly turned to face Devon to find the younger girl already looking at her. "That was my shoulder." Molly whispered and Devon, looking just as confused as Molly, ed back at her, mouthed back, "I know."

Molly squinted, now finding it hard to focus with her heartbeat ringing in her ears. She turned her head to the referee to call a time out, but when she turned to the man, Molly noticed his eyes were on Cobra Kai.

She turned to see who the referee was looking at and Molly's jaw clenched when she saw Silver smirking wildly at man. Molly took a big breath as she got into fighting positions. If this ref was favoring Cobra Kai, she was going to have to make every point undeniable.

"Ready?" The man looked back and forth between the two girls and Molly noticed the way he looked just past Devon to Silver before he turned back to the girls and swung his arms down. "Fight!" He screamed and Molly instantly sent punch after punch to Devon.

While Devon was distracted guarding the upper half of her body from Molly's punches, Molly got onto the ground and swept Devon's legs out from under her. When Devon hit the floor, Molly slid on her knees to get beside the girl and punched her in the stomach.

"Point, Preston. 2-1." The referee yelled and Molly stood up, holding her hand out for Devon.

Devon looked back and forth between Molly's eyes and her hand before grabbing the older girls hand and letting Molly help her up. "Sorry about that." Molly said as she pulled Devon up.

Devon chuckled, readjusting her gi and shrugging. "No problem." She whispered back, nervous her senseis would get mad at her for "fraternizing with the enemy."

Molly stepped awy from Devon, back to her spot and raised her fist to get into her fighting stance. Devon mimicked her action and the referee looked back and forth between the two girls, making sure they were both ready before he started the fight.

"Fight!"

Devon let out a war cry as she swung her fist to hit Molly in the gut. Molly raised her hand and pushed Devon's fist away from her stomach with her forearm, blocking it. Just before Devon could retaliate and throw another punch, Molly raised her foot and kicked her right in the chest.

A huge smile made its way onto Molly's face and her hands flew to cover her mouth in excitement.

She could hear her team cheer for her as the referee walked towards her and grabbed her hand, lifting it in the air in victory. "Point. Winner, Preston!"

Molly pulled her hand out of the referee's grip to run to her team. The first people she saw waiting for her on the edge of the mat were Miguel and Robby, their smiles as big as hers. Molly laughed out of excitement as she jumped off the mat and into their arms for a hug.

"Dude, that was awesome!" Miguel practically cackled out, him and Robby almost dropping Molly, but Molly didn't notice or care. She was way too excited for her win.

When she pulled away from their hug, Molly was met with Daniel and Chozen waiting to congratulate her next. Daniel had a big smile on his face and it softened when Molly pulled him into a hug. "I am proud of you, Molly. That was incredible." Daniel said, hugging the girl back.

Molly removed herself from Daniel's arms and turned to Chozen, whose smile was taking over his entire face. His arms were out expectantly. "You did it!" He cheered and Molly hugged the man, her smile coming back bigger than ever. "I did it!"

From over Chozen's shoulder, Molly watched as Eli slowly got up from his spot on the stairs, his eyes set on her and his smile sending butterflies swarming in Molly's stomach. She pulled away from her hug with Chozen to walk toward Eli.

She held her hands out as she walked toward him incase he fell. "You okay?" Molly asked, but Eli didn't answer.

His eyes stayed glued on hers as his smile widened. Without saying a word, Eli crashed into Molly's arms, pulling her into a hug.

"Good job, Molls." Eli whispered into her hair.

Even though Eli was putting most of his weight on Molly to keep himself up, Molly smiled and hugged Eli tighter.

...

After giving the Sekai Taikai organizers time to talk over their decision, Gunther finally smiled at all of the students in front of him. "As expected, we were impressed with the skills, precision and discipline of the new Sekai Taikai qualifier..."

Molly held her breath and nervously bounced on her toes.

"Cobra Kai."

Molly froze and her shoulders slumped. Her lips parted in shock and she could feel a reassuring hand rub her shoulder, but she didn't turn her head to see who it was. Her eyes stayed glued on Gunther, part of her hoping he'd see the shock and glossy eyes and change his mind.

"As for our other dojo, we admired your unusual mix of styles and underdog spirit... and we think you could be a unique addition to the competition." Gunther said, and Mollys eyes almost popped out of her head.

No way that worked.

Gunther smiled at everyone's confused faces and Mollys shocked one. "Therefore, we've decided that your dojo has also qualified."

"Oh my God!" Molly screamed, her laughs of excitement turning into cheers as she turned to her right and jumped into Sam's arms for a hug.

"Congratulations, everyone, and welcome to the Sekai Taikai." Gunther yelled, but Molly and Sam could barely hear him over their own laughter.

When they pulled away from their hug, Miguel came up from behind Sam and wrapped his arms around her waist. Sam yelped as Miguel lifted her up and spun her in excitement. Molly watched the couple with a small smile before she felt someone gently grab her waist and turn her around.

She came face to face with Eli and keeping his hands in her waist, Eli pulled her closer until he had to dip his head to kiss her.

Molly smiled into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his shoulders to keep him close and when he pulled away, he had a small smile on his face and a pink tint on his cheeks.

"Maybe one day we'll both win." Eli whispered.

"We've all earned this. Each and every one of you brought your A-game." Daniel said, making the students turn to him, and their other senseis.

"Could not be more proud." Chozen said, making Molly smile. Daniel nodded in agreement with Chozen, smiling at all of the students in front of him.

"With this tournament in our future, we've got a lot of work to do. But tonight... Tonight, go celebrate!"

...

Miguel and Robby decided to celebrate the teams win by hosting a party at their apartment complex and Molly only agreed if the boys promised that no one would go into her apartment.

Even though the two boys promised that no one would go into her apartment, Molly spent most of the party outside so she could keep an eye on her unit.

Molly didn't mind this plan though. In the middle of the courtyard was a beer pong table, so Molly played a couple rounds with Mitch, Chris, Bert and Nate.

Molly was also staying outside because Moon was stopping by to drop off some of her stash. Moon couldn't make it to the party, but she had to run to the dispensary and didn't see an issue with picking up Molly's things and dropping them off.

When Moon pulled into the parking lot, Molly let out a squeal like an excited kid on Christmas. She completely disregarded the game of beer pong she was playing with Nate to run to the girls car. After giving the girl about a hundred thank yous and even leaning into the car to kiss Moon's cheek, Molly pulled out one of her pre rolls from what Moon brought her and her lighter out of her purse.

Molly brought the joint to her lips and lit it as she walked toward Johnny's apartment, knowing that was where everyone else was.

The ember from Molly's joint glowed softly in the night. The flame briefly illuminated her face, casting shadows that danced across her features and once she walked inside the home, the light was drawn out by the home lights over her. Molly took a deep inhale, the smoke filling her lungs as she looked around the house.

When she saw Eli, Miguel, and Robby sitting at the kitchen island, Molly pulled the joint out of her lips with two fingers and let out a slow exhale. She watched the smoke curl around her before it dissipated as she walked through it, toward the boys.

Smelling weed, Miguel was pulled out of his conversation with Eli and Robby to see who was smoking inside. When his eyes landed on Molly walking toward them, taking another hit of her joint, Miguel hummed, pushing himself off the island.

"And where did you get this?" Miguel teased, making Eli and Robby stop their conversation to turn to Molly.

Molly turned her head away from the boys to blow the smoke out of her mouth and now that the joint was in Molly's hand, Miguel snatched it from her hands.

Holding it between his thumb and index finger, Miguel brought the joint to his lips to add onto his teasing toward Molly, but as soon as he breathed in the smoke and the burning entered his throat and lungs, Miguel pulled the joint out of his mouth and hunched over to cough.

Molly rolled her eyes, taking the joint back but still smiling at the question. "Moon. She couldn't make it. She's got a date, but my place was on the way so she dropped it off." Molly hummed before she looked down at her purse and tilted the edge of it so the three boys could see inside her bag. "Along with these..." She sang, showing off the handful of other joints Moon got her.

As Miguel's coughing fit started to slowly die down, Eli, who was rubbing Miguel's back to help him catch his breath, raised his eyebrows at his girlfriends words.

"So you're gonna smoke in senseis apartment?" Eli asked, the corners of his lips tugging into a smile. Sure, Eli was terrified of Sensei coming home and finding his apartment smelling like weed, but he couldn't help but stare at Molly in awe.

Molly snickered, looking around the apartment. "It already reeks of beer." Molly muttered, her voice having a small disgust. When she turned back to Eli and Robby, Molly pursed her lips. "Plus, sensei likes weed." She said, bringing the joint back up to her lips.

Eli and Robby stared at Molly like she were crazy. Eli squinted at her while Robby straightened up. "How do you know that?" Robby asked, eyeing Molly carefully.

"I went with Moon to the dispensary a couple months ago and ran into him there." Molly laughed to herself, bringing her hand up to cover her face and giggles. "It was really embarrassing but now when I go outside for a smoke, he comes out and sits with me. Sometimes he'll bring out his stash and have some with me."

Eli licked his lips and dropped his head to hide his laughter and Miguel, who knew about this dynamic, turned away completely and laughed out loud when he saw Robby look at Molly as if she had three heads.

"I'm sorry. Are you saying you have smoke sessions with my dad?" Robby asked, hoping that Molly was just pranking him and his ex girlfriend didn't casually smoke with his dad he only just started having a good relationship with.

But when Molly looked to Robby completely and smiled, Robby realized Molly was not joking.

"Yeah. Amazing smoke buddy, I must say." Molly breathed out and Robby shut his eyes, shaking his head and throwing his hands up to cover his ears. "Please, stop talking!" He said over her.

Molly raised her eyebrows, taking the joint up to her mouth and leaving it between her lips. "No weed for you, then." She huffed playfully, smoke accidentally blowing in the boys face.

Molly knew that of the three boys, Robby would be the one to want some of her weed so when Robby's jaw dropped, Molly had to hold back a smirk. She turned and walked back out of the apartment, part of her actually worried to stink of Johnny's home.

"Molls! Wait up!"

Molly paused mid-step and turned around as Eli jogged up to her. His attention was locked on the joint in her fingers. His gaze flickered between it and her face, his eyebrows knitting together.

"What, um... what do you have?" He asked, nodding toward the joint and his hands tucked into his hoodie pockets.

Molly followed his eyes, then looked back at him with a raised eyebrow. "Like, what kind of weed?" She asked, tilting her head slightly.

Eli nodded.

Molly took another hit, making sure to look down at she inhaled and throw her head over her shoulder when she exhaled so no smoke blew back into Eli's face. "Sour diesel." She answered as she turned back to Eli, some leftover smoke coming out with her words and the ember at the tip of the joint glowing as she took another short pull. "It's good stuff."

Eli squinted slightly, tilting his head at the name. "Doesn't Zayn have a song about that?" He asked without even thinking, but then, Molly froze mid-inhale. Her lips parted slightly as she blinked at him before her eyes widened. "Did you just—"

Eli groaned before she could even finish, already rolling his eyes like he knew exactly where this was going. "Don't give me that look." He grumbled. "You made me listen to One Direction all the time. You really think I wouldn't end up liking at least one of them?"

Molly smiled, unable to hide her amusement. She bit down on her bottom lip to hold down a laugh and gave him a slow, approving nod. "Yes, he does." She confirmed, looking at him like he'd just admitted to some deep, personal secret.

A comfortable silence settled between them and when it became long enough for Molly to think he was done asking questions, she lifted the joint again, ready to take another hit when—

"I heard it's good for sex."

Molly choked.

She inhaled too hard, too fast. Her throat instantly burned before she could stop it, sending her into a coughing fit. She turned away, pressing her inner elbow to her mouth as she coughed and fought to catch her breath, shocked by Eli's words.

When her coughing died down, Molly took a big, but shaky breath and looked down at the joint still pinched between her fingers. She pursed her lips and her voice was raspier when she spoke from how much she was just coughing. "I mean... it's known to give you euphoria, increases your energy, so—" She shrugged, like she was just stating the facts. "Yeah, probably great for sex."

Eli only nodded, as if this was just another casual conversation topic and he wasn't talking about sex with his girlfriend he hasn't slept with in over a year. His gaze drifted to her face, watching as she took another hit. The ember flared again, casting a soft glow over her features.

She looked beautiful.

So, he spoke again.

"Can I try some?"

Molly's pulse skipped. Heat bloomed across her skin, and she wasn't sure if it was just the high creeping in or the way Eli was looking at her. Maybe both.

She smirked, hoping it masked the warmth blooming under her skin, and held the joint up between two fingers. "Sure."

But Eli didn't take it. Instead, he leaned in, dipping his head just enough to meet her fingers. Molly watched, heart hammering against her ribs, as his lips brushed the joint she was still holding, his eyes never leaving hers as he took a slow inhale.

Molly swallowed, suddenly feeling like it was hard to breathe even though she was actually just struggling to breathe a minute ago and this was completely different.

Breathing just felt way too complicated now.

Eli exhaled smoothly, the smoke drifting away from them as he pulled back as if he's done it a thousand times before. His lips curled slightly when he caught the way she was still staring, her eyes just a little hazier now.

She blinked, trying to pull herself together, but her mouth had gone unbearably dry. Clearing her throat, she forced herself to sound casual as she smirked up at Eli. "This one's almost out, but we can have more in my room if you want?" She motioned behind her toward her apartment door with her thumb, praying her voice didn't crack.

Eli's eyes flicked toward the door, then back to her. Then, without a word, he stepped closer. His hands found her waist, his hands moving to hold her waist.

"Are your moms home?" He asked. His voice was lower now, almost a murmur as his fingers grazed the warm sliver of skin between her top and jeans.

Molly felt her stomach dip as her gaze dropped to his lips before she could stop herself. A small smile tugged at hers. "Nope." She hummed, flicking her eyes back up to meet his through her eyelashes. "Date night."

Eli's grip tightened just slightly, his hands still holding her sides tight. Even though Molly's heart was pounding against her ribs, she had a feeling Eli's was doing the exact same thing when she noticed his face starting to turn a deep shade of red as he held back a smile.

Eli nodded, blinking as if to bring him out of whatever daydream he was in.

"Then yeah."

emily speaks...
i got a little ahead of myself with this chapter... definitely giggled the ENTIRE time writing it(specifically that last little bit omg)

WE ARE ALMOST DONE WITH SEASON 5!!! WE CHEERED!! I CHEERED!! YES!!

ALSO PART THREE JUST CAME OUT TODAY AND IT WAS SO GOOOOOOD