❝ now you have an ugly nose to go with that ugly face, bitch. ❞

OVER THE SPAN OF the next two weeks, Ayane had not talked to Miguel at all.

They both ignored each other at school, and Ayane started sitting with Aisha at lunch. She would talk to Demetri and Hawk every now and then, but they pretty much sided with Miguel on everything.

Robby kept coming over to help her, which Ayane thought was beneficial. She was just so pissed that Miguel would think there was anything going on between her and Robby.

Ayane found that certain kicks would give her a weird feeling in her back, but she determinedly ignored it.

Because now, it was the night before the All Valley Tournament and she had to convince her dad she was good to compete.

They stood in the dojo, Ennis testing Ayane. Combined with her physical therapy sessions, sparring with Robby had really paid off. She didn't feel completely up to strength, but Ayane knew without a doubt she was capable of winning.

"Show me the roundhouse kick," Ennis said, pacing the room.

Ayane winced internally. That was always the one that got her. Nonetheless she did it, once again ignoring the pain in her back.

She turned to her dad, raising her hands. "Well? What do you think?"

Ennis narrowed his eyes, thinking hard.

"Alright, fine. You can compete. I'll call Mr. LaRusso and let him know."

Ayane smiled tightly, almost wanting to hug her dad. But she stopped herself, simply nodding.

"Thank you."

Ennis shrugged her off. "You need to wash up and go to bed. Get lots of rest and drink plenty of water."

Ayane nodded, hurrying upstairs and doing so. When Ayane got out of the shower and looked at her phone, her heart nearly skipped a beat.

Miguel had texted her.

For a moment, Ayane considered just completely ignoring him. Although she was really dying to talk to him.

He wasn't just her boyfriend, he was her best friend.

Ayane snatched up her phone and read the text message. She didn't want to smile but she always did. Miguel hadn't even said anything except 'hi' and it still made her heart flutter.

She waited a few minutes before replying, sitting nervously by her phone. It vibrated at once, Ayane quickly picking it up. Her stomach was in knots, and she quickly realized that she did not need to be this nervous the night before the tournament.

Miguel asked her how she was. Ayane turned off her phone and got in bed.

She would talk to him tomorrow.

. . . .

AYANE HAD NEVER BEEN more nervous in her life.

She could not even bring herself to eat breakfast, and her entire body was shaking uncontrollably. Ennis finally made her eat something, though Ayane felt like she could barely keep it down.

In her arms was the white gi Mr. LaRusso had given her, the back of it having a pretty design of a bonsai tree.

They arrived at the arena. There were people everywhere already, which made Ayane increasingly nervous. Mr. LaRusso was walking alongside her, and he could practically feel her anxiety.

Suddenly, Ayane realized they were missing someone. "Hey Mr. LaRusso- where's Robby?"

Daniel visibly tensed up at the name. Ayane frowned, wondering what the problem was.

"Um- Robby isn't going to be competing. He- he had something to come up last minute. But I'm sure you won't mind doing this alone, right? I know you've got it in you."

Ayane smiled at once, but she got the feeling Mr. LaRusso was lying about something. She dismissed it after a moment.

"Yeah," she replied, "I think I've got this."

However, that opinion changed when Ayane walked in to find the massive number of Cobra Kais, all huddled in a circle.

Ayane immediately spotted Miguel, and he looked right back at her. She quickly glanced away, signing her name on the sign-in sheet. They had to be in the locker rooms in five minutes.

Ennis and Liana could not go any further with her, so she told them goodbye and stuck it out with Daniel.

"Come here," he said at once, gesturing over to a quiet corner of the room.

Ayane rocked on her heels with nervousness, looking up at Mr. LaRusso.

"I want to share something with you that Mr. Miyagi told me."

She nodded, chewing her inner gum and looking at him with a serious face.

"It's okay to lose to your opponent, but you must not lose to fear. Don't be afraid of who you face, and don't be afraid of who they are. Do you understand?"

Ayane nodded firmly. "I understand, Sensei."

Daniel smiled. "Ah, come here," he said, pulling the girl into a hug.

After that, she went to the locker room to change into her gi. There weren't many girls there, which disheartened Ayane a little. She needed to start recruiting more females for this sport. Most of them undoubtedly had the anger for it.

She talked to Aisha for a moment, considering asking about Miguel. But Ayane dismissed it, simply wishing Aisha luck.

Mr. LaRusso was waiting for her outside, and the two went to warm up. Ayane felt fine physically, and she had not felt her back bother her all morning.

It was emotionally that she was fucked up.

At once, they began announcing the teams. Ayane stood next to Mr. LaRusso, clapping mindlessly for kids she knew she would beat.

"And now from Reseda... returning once again... we have Cobra Kai-"

There were chants, loud chants of 'Cobra Kai!'. Ayane looked in the direction of everyone else, finding Miguel leading the others out of the locker rooms.

His hardened expression faltered when he passed by her, and time felt like it slowed down for a moment. Ayane's stomach lurched when it fully hit her that she was going to have to fight him.

Ayane broke away, Mr. LaRusso looking down at her. "You alright?" He asked.

She nodded dismissively, turning her attention away from the Cobra Kais.

"Next, from Encino Hills, we have Miyagi-Do!"

Ayane looked up, hearing many cheers. They were mainly for Mr. LaRusso, since he was one of the All Valley's most famous champions. She became even more nervous when realizing that now she would have that to live up to.

"And finally, unaffiliated, we have Mr. Robby Keene!"

She whipped her head up, eyes wide. Ayane and Daniel exchanged a look, then seeing none other than Robby making an entrance.

He did not look at her, or anyone for that matter. Ayane watched in disbelief, shaking her head a little. Miguel was looking at her again, she suddenly noticed.

Ayane finally looked back, giving a small smile. Miguel looked away.

At once, the fighting began. The first person she was up against was some kid from Topanga. He was ugly and reminded her of a frog.

"You know the rules," the referee said, "three points wins. Now face me, bow."

She did so, then turning back to the ugly boy. He sneered at her like some kind of vulture.

"Face each other, bow."

Ayane bowed respectfully, but the boy simply gave a curt nod.

She rolled her eyes, getting into fighting position.

The match was over in five minutes, and the boy had not even touched her. Ayane smiled at him as he walked off, holding his side.

She walked over to Mr. LaRusso, who was observing someone to their left. Ayane saw that is was Miguel, sighing.

"Johnny's gotten into his head," Daniel muttered, shaking his head. "Hey, that was fantastic," he said to her with a smile. "I don't think anyone here stands a chance."

Ayane smiled curtly, watching Miguel. He was the only one so far that had remained untouched. And Robby.

The next match was with someone slightly better, but they still did not gain any points on her. Ayane was deflecting just the way Mr. LaRusso had taught her; quickly and sharp-minded.

Ennis caught her eye at once, giving his daughter a curt nod. That made Ayane feel slightly better to know that she at least she wasn't disappointing him.

She watched both Miguel and Robby primarily, but she also watched Hawk and Aisha. They were second best to Miguel. Hawk moved with surprising speed and Aisha had a crazy amount of strength.

Next up was the one and only, Aisha.

They both smiled at each other. "No hard feelings, right?" Ayane said with a grin.

"Depends on how hard you hit me," Aisha replied, tilting her head.

This one was a bit tougher. Aisha did not hesitate to strike, barely giving Ayane recover time. The first point went to her, but Ayane did not slip up again. She did not kick Aisha, but rather used strikes.

She had to save her kicks for when she needed them most.

At one point, Ayane noticed Johnny looking at her. Then, he tapped Miguel on the shoulder and whispered something to him.

Ayane clenched her jaw, staring at them both with fire in her eyes. If Johnny's tactic was to piss her off, then it sure was working.

Daniel noticed at once, leaning down and saying, "Don't let that asshole get under your skin. It's what he's good at. It's best to just take all of that anger and channel it into your matches."

She tightened her fist, finally looking away from Johnny.

Looking up at the board, Ayane saw with some horror that she was fighting Hawk next.

He seemed to see it at the same time as her, staring at her from across the room.

Ayane furrowed her eyebrows, noticing how Hawk did not appear to want to be friendly. She sighed, turning away from his predatory glare. Hawk wasn't as good as her, and they both knew it.

When the time came for their match, they both bowed respectively. She wanted to say something, but Hawk's devious expression was throwing her off.

"Good luck," she muttered, getting into position.

"Don't need it," he replied, planting his feet.

"Fight!"

Angrily, Ayane kicked Hawk square in the stomach with enough force to knock him on the ground. He had pissed her off with his shitty attitude, now.

There were a lot of 'oohs' from around the room, and people began turning their attention to the match.

Hawk stumbled to his feet, gritting his teeth.

Ayane gave him a challenging look, her smile completely faded now.

"Fight!"

Hawk came at her with a fast roundhouse, but Ayane grabbed his leg midair and Hawk fell to the ground. She kneeled swiftly, taking a strike to his arm.

"Two points, Cain!" The referee announced, Ayane standing up and backing away slowly. A smirk had formed on her face.

"Time out," Johnny called, beckoning Hawk over.

Daniel approached Ayane. "You're doing great, kiddo. I love the satisfaction of seeing Cobra Kai lose."

Ayane smiled a little, taken by surprise. She didn't know Mr. LaRusso could be so vengeful.

"Hey, I have a feeling he's going to try to pull a dirty move. Defense only, keep your guard up," Daniel said, watching Hawk.

Ayane nodded, turning her head over. She had to get back on the mat, now.

Hawk was not looking her directly in the eyes, now. He seemed to be looking just below, near her shoulder.

"Ready," the referee said, "fight!"

Hawk made the first move, Ayane blocking his strike and the two switching sides. Before Ayane could turn around, Hawk suddenly kicked her square in the back.

She fell, gasping with pain. Something was definitely injured.

Mr. LaRusso watched in horror, rushing over but not stepping on the mat. Ayane still had a chance to get up.

She briefly had the wind knocked out of her, gasping for breath. At once, Ayane was able to catch it and began taking slow, deep breaths.

"Miss Cain, will you be able to continue?" The referee asked, kneeling beside her.

Ayane could feel the pain shooting up her back, but the adrenaline was fueling her now. She was beyond pissed, and she was going to finish this fight.

Pushing herself to her feet, Ayane stood and made eye contact with Johnny. She held up her middle finger to him for everyone to see, then stepped back on the mat.

Hawk seemed to be feeling good about himself, now. He had a smug grin on his face, bouncing around for a moment.

"It looks like Miss Cain is determined to stay in this tournament," the announcer said, "despite the illegal kick by Moskowitz."

Ayane tilted her head down, shooting a deadly glare at Hawk.

"Ready... fight!"

Hawk, yet again, struck first. Ayane pulled the same move she had taught Robby a few months ago. He did a round kick which she dodged, a forward strike that she blocked, and then came at her with an elbow strike.

Ayane pushed his elbow down with her left arm, taking her own elbow right to his face.

It was an illegal move, but she got the point. Hawk stood, touching his nose. Blood was gushing from it.

"Now you have an ugly nose to go with that ugly face, bitch," she spat, stepping off the mat.

Miguel watched Ayane, horrified.

What had karate turned her into?

NOTES!
next chapter she's gonna fight two more people!! i wonder who,, 🌝

ps. y'all don't be gettin emotional about ayane and miguel's relationship, i'll tell you now that they will be back together at some point <3