CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE:
THE KING OF MY HEART
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Maddie stands in her Cobra Kai gi, anxiously waiting for the tournament to begin. Her eyes start to glance around the arena, quickly landing on her rival dojo entering the room. The girl watches as Sawyer Henley strolls in next to Silver and Wolf while Axel slowly follows behind them.

Johnny suddenly appears next to the LaRusso girl, noticing her stare on her opponents that were standing across from them, "Ignore her bullshit. Keep your head in the game." He whispers, causing the brunette to divert her gaze towards the Lawrence man before she slowly nods in response at his words.

Gunther taps on the microphone, catching the LaRusso girl's attention when he begins speaking, "Ladies and gentlemen, please find your seats. The girls final match will begin momentarily."

Maddie inhales sharply before huddling up with Miguel and Johnny. The Lawrence man begins looking between both his students, "Just focus on what you need to do out there and nothing else. Both of you. Don't worry about overall points. Just win your fights, okay?"

The Diaz boy shakes his head, "No." He tells him, causing the LaRusso girl to glance at Miguel while Johnny furrows his eyebrows as he waits for him to continue, "Sorry Sensei but there's no way in hell we're letting Silver buy himself another title."

Maddie nods in agreement, making eye contact with Johnny before she spoke, "He's right. We can close the gap." She confidently says, causing a proud smile to form on the Lawrence man's lips.

"Badass," He tells them, just as Gunther starts to talk into the microphone yet again.

"Who is ready for karate?" The man asks, earning a round of applause from the energetic crowd, "Our championship bout will follow the same structure as our semifinals. Three rounds, two minutes each, with unlimited scoring."

Maddie begins stretching her arms while Gunther continues, "Knockdowns are worth ten points, and if a downed fighter cannot reengage within ten seconds, they will be considered knocked out. And their opponent awarded twenty points."

Sensei Wolf leans into Sawyer's ear, noticing that her eyes were stuck on the LaRusso girl in front of them, "She cannot match your speed or skill." He tells her, causing Silver to step forward which instantly catches Axel's attention and makes him listen in on their conversation.

"And don't let her forget how much real estate you own in her head either," Silver whispers, earning a smirk from the Henley girl as she continues staring at Maddie.

"The individual title goes to the competitor who scores the most points over these three rounds," Gunther informs the two teams and their fans, causing Johnny to glance towards the brunette as she begins jumping on the heels of her feet, adrenaline pumping throughout her entire body.

"Alright Mads. It's go time," He says, raising his fist for Maddie to bump in which she does.

"And now, the final match to determine our female world champion. Please come to the mat, Madison LaRusso of Cobra Kai." The LaRusso girl bows towards Johnny before walking towards the center of the mat.

Miguel claps his hands together, a small and nervous smile resting on his lips, "Let's go, Maddie!" He cheers while the rest of her friends and teammates hold up their signs that they had all made.

"And Sawyer Henley of the Iron Dragons," Gunther adds, making the Henley girl confidently step forward with a smirk on her face as she does so, "Good luck to you both." He finishes, causing both girls to bow towards one another before Sawyer glances towards the crowd.

"You can act like you're not scared, but we both know who ended up in the hospital after the last time we fought," Sawyer reminds her, inching closer to the LaRusso girl as she looks her up and down, "And I know deep down, it eats you up inside that no mater what happens, everyone will still love me, and you'll just be known as the pathetic, sad, naive little girl who got stabbed."

Axel watches the two girls intensely, his thoughts racing at what Sawyer could be saying, "Don't let her get inside your head." He mumbles, shaking his head slightly when he notices Maddie's fists begin to clench.

"Look around," Sawyer says, causing Maddie to divert her gaze towards the crowd. The bright lights nearly blinding her as she does so, "You've got a home field advantage but most of these sad little people from your sad little Valley are cheering for me. So enjoy the last of your fifteen minutes of fame, because who knows? Maybe after this match, you'll be back in that hospital bed."

Maddie begins to step forward, wanting to wipe that disgusting smirk off her opponent's face as anger boils through her blood. However, she quickly stops in her tracks when she hears the horn blare throughout the arena. The referee stands in between the two girl's, "Fighters, face me. Bow. Face each other, bow."

He instructs, causing both girl's to do as they were told before getting into their fighting positions, "Ready?" The referee asks, glancing between the two girls as Maddie begins to bounce on her feet while she glares at the Henley girl in front of her.

"Let's go, LaRusso! She's all yours!" Johnny yells out, making the brunette's attitude slightly falter as she begins to think back on Sawyer's words.

Snapping Maddie back into reality is the referee when he waves his hand down, "Fight!" He yells, causing the LaRusso girl to strike first with a whole bunch of different attacks which Sawyer manages to block.

The Henley girl uses this distraction to her advantage and flips sides with Maddie before punching her across the face, "Point!" The referee says, earning claps from Silver and Wolf while Miyagi-Do and Axel bite the inside of their cheeks as they watch the fight continue.

"Come on Maddie, you're gonna have to try harder than that," The Henley girl taunts, causing the LaRusso girl to get back into her fighting stance before attacking the other brunette with a side kick. Sawyer quickly moves out of the way which causes Maddie to miss another kick.

The Henley girl kicks Maddie's knee, making the LaRusso girl lose her balance. Sawyer tries sending a punch towards Maddie's face, but the other brunette is quick to shove it away. However, Sawyer uses this to her advantage and sends a hit to Maddie's back, "No point. Illegal kick to the back." The referee says, causing the LaRusso girl to stand back on her feet, a huff escaping her mouth as she does so.

Maddie tries swinging towards the Henley girl's face, but all her attacks are dodged and she can't land a single hit. During her desperate attempts, Sawyer sends a high kick towards the LaRusso girl's face which luckily the other brunette is quick to block, "No point. Block!" The referee states, making Johnny cup his hands together when he notices Maddie's frantic behavior.

"Focus, LaRusso!" He shouts, making all eyes fall on the brunette as she tries to calm herself down.

Sam shakes her head, watching the fight continue before leaning in towards Bianca and Tory, "That bitch got in her head." She tells them, earning nods in agreement from the two other girls as they bite the inside of their cheeks.

Maddie inhales sharply as Sawyer and her slowly circle one another. Their intense eye contact being noticeable to everyone in the crowd. The LaRusso girl spins on her foot, making the Henley girl lean back as she dodges her attacks with ease.

Sawyer kneels down while the other brunette begins to twirl around, throwing a punch in the Henley girl's direction. However, Maddie is quickly interrupted by a kick that lands on her stomach, "Point!" The referee announces as the LaRusso girl slightly stumbles back.

Maddie barely has anytime to recover as the Henley girl starts to throw multiple jabs her way, kicking the LaRusso girl in her side this time, "Point!" The referee shouts while Maddie tries shielding her head from the continuous attacks, not even paying attention to her open chest.

Sawyer uses this to her advantage and sends a front kick towards the open target, "Point!" The Henley girl notices Maddie's balance wobble slightly which gives her the opportunity to spin around before sending her foot right across Maddie's face, "Point!"

The horn blares loudly throughout the arena as Maddie holds her cheek. She slowly turns back around, her eyes scanning the scoreboard to read 0-5. A frustrated sigh escapes her lips as she makes her way back towards Johnny and Miguel while Sawyer confidently walks back to Wolf and Silver.

Axel watches the LaRusso girl with worrisome eyes, knowing that whatever Sawyer said had messed with her head. He bites the inside of his cheek when he sees Johnny begin talking to the LaRusso girl, "Shake it off, shake it off. You're only down by five, alright? That's not even a touchdown. Plenty of time to come back. She's baiting you. Alright? Making you gas out."

Maddie slowly nods her head, his speech not registering in her mind as Sawyer's words continue replaying through her head instead. The LaRusso girl doesn't even notice her father walk up to the pair. Daniel turns towards Johnny, "Mind if I talk to her?" He asks, causing the Lawrence man to instantly nod his head since he knows Daniel has a better shot at getting his daughter's head back into the game than him.

"I thought I could do this, Dad. But I can't, I can't beat her. She's beaten me once before and she's just going to do it again," She tells him, defeat already showing on her face while she shakes her head slightly which causes Daniel's eyes to narrow.

"What's your name?" The LaRusso man asks, causing Maddie's eyebrows to furrow before she spoke.

"What?" She questions, not understanding the point of his question.

Daniel steps forward, "I said, what's your name?" He repeats, making Maddie take a deep breath before responding.

"Madison LaRusso," She answers, earning a slow nod from her father.

"Exactly, you're a LaRusso. And LaRusso's don't give up. We keep fighting, no matter what," He tells her, causing Maddie to finally focus in on the conversation. "This is your fight Madison. But most importantly, it's your final fight. This is the last time you'll be out on that mat. The last time you'll be in a karate gi. The last time you'll hear a long motivational speech from your old man to get your head back into the game," Daniel reminds her, causing a small smile to form on the brunette girl's lips.

"So get back out there and win this entire fucking thing," He instructs, earning a laugh from Maddie's mouth as she begins to fix her captain's headband that was beginning to fall off. "Forget about that thing," Daniel says, snatching the band off of his daughter's head before taking his iconic blue and white band out of his pocket.

Maddie makes eye contact with her dad while he ties the headband around her head. As soon as he was done, he places his hands back onto her shoulders, "Now let's show them how the LaRusso's finish fights."

The LaRusso girl smirks at her father's words, giving him one final nod before bowing towards him and turning back towards Johnny and Miguel. "You got this, Mads." The Lawrence man says, noticing the girl's entire behavior had changed. She was calm, confident, and looked ready to finish this once and for all.

Maddie smiles softly as she bows towards Johnny before stepping back onto the mat. She shakes her arms, feeling the adrenaline flow through her veins once again, "Kick her ass, Maddie!" Miguel shouts, watching as Sawyer confidently walks onto the mat as well.

"Ready?" The referee asks, glancing between both girls. Maddie takes a deep breath, her eyes scanning the arena before landing on Axel who gives her a small nod, telling her that she's got this. The LaRusso girl unwillingly breaks eye contact with the Kovačević boy as she gets into her fighting stance. Her fists raising slightly, defense being her main priority, "Fight!" The referee announces, causing the two girls to circle one another.

Sawyer strikes first this time, sending a kick towards Maddie's face which is quickly shoved away by the LaRusso girl. The two switch sides while the Henley girl sends a jab towards the other brunette, but Maddie luckily dodges it. Maddie bends down, sweeping Sawyer off her feet before punching the girl in her chest, "Point!"

"Yes!" Johnny exclaims, clapping his hands together with a proud smile on his face. Silver's eyes slightly widen when he watches Maddie do a side aerial towards the Henley girl, making her stumble backwards before doing a flip herself.

When Sawyer turns back to face Maddie, she is instantly met with a fist landing directly in her face, "Point!" The referee announces, causing the Henley girl to yell in frustration before charging at her opponent.

Maddie uses this towards her advantage and moves the Henley girl's arm away before circling it around which creates an open target on her chest. The LaRusso girl acts fast and slams her fist into Sawyer's body, "Point!"

"Let's go, Mads!" Sam cheers, noticing her sister had gotten her head back into the game and that she was completely focused on winning her fight.

Sawyer huffs and tries attacking again, her elbow aiming for the LaRusso girl's face. However, Maddie moves it back with her forearm before ducking down to block another attack she had thrown. Maddie flips away from the Henley girl to which catches Sawyer off guard, making her turn around in confusion.

Once she faces Maddie again, she is instantly met with a high kick slapping her across the face. The Henley girl falls to her knees on the mat for a brief second, "Knockdown. Ten points!"

"Yes!" Miguel exclaims, his eyes widening when he watches the score go from 3-5 to 13-5.

Bianca claps her hands together before cupping them around her mouth, "Come on, Mads! You got this!" She encourages, making the LaRusso girl smile brightly at her best friend's words.

Sensei Wolf's eyes widen, watching as his captain quickly jumps back onto her feet. Sawyer continues growing frustrated, causing her to send a roundhouse kick towards Maddie which the LaRusso girl catches but instantly lets go when she notices the Henley girl's other foot flying towards her.

Maddie moves her head, making Sawyer's punch miss while the LaRusso girl crouches down near her waist line, extending her leg forward to slap the Henley girl across the face, "Another point!"

Sawyer charges at the other brunette again, causing the LaRusso girl to move out of the way before spinning around on the heels of her foot and lifting it in the air to make contact with her opponent's face yet again. This causes the Henley girl to fall back down onto the mat, "Knockdown. Ten points!"

"Hell yeah!" Johnny cheers, clapping his hands together while Miguel does the same.

The rest of the Miyagi-Do team rises from their seats on the bleachers, cheering and clapping loudly for their friend's success, "Let's go!" Noah shouts, cupping his hands together over his mouth so Maddie can hear him.

"Get up!" Silver yells towards Sawyer, his tone full of anger and frustration which makes the Henley girl instantly get back onto her feet. She lets out a small yell as she gets back into her fighting stance.

Sawyer sends a front kick towards Maddie but it's blocked by the LaRusso girl. Maddie switches sides with the Henley girl as she dodges yet another attack from her which throws Sawyer completely off balance. Maddie crouches down, sending daggers with her eyes towards the fearful girl in front of her.

Sawyer's eyes widen when Maddie glances towards the audience, her eyes landing on her father in the stands. He gave her a proud smile with a small nod in which she returns before sliding closer towards the Henley girl.

She takes a deep breath as she does her signature tornado kick, her leg extending slightly which strikes Sawyer across the face. A yell of adrenaline escapes Maddie's mouth when she lands back down perfectly on her feet, staring down at her opponent whose mouth began pouring blood with a few teeth missing.

Sawyer hits the mat with a thud, causing the referee to quickly bend down to check on her. When he notices she cannot continue, he quickly waves his hands before motioning towards Maddie, "Knockout. Winner!" He announces, making the entire arena erupt in loud cheers and applause as they stood up to congratulate the LaRusso girl.

Maddie steps forward to hover over Sawyer before speaking, "Welcome to the Valley." She pauses, watching the Henley girl groan in pain as she clutches the side of her head, "Bitch." She finishes, stepping back to see her family and friends run towards her.

Miguel and Johnny reach the girl first, engulfing her into a quick hug with bright smiles on their faces, "Way to go LaRusso!" The Lawrence man tells her, patting her on the back before she is quickly pulled into another group hug with Tory, Bianca, and Noah.

"We're so proud of you, Mads," Bianca whispers, earning nods in agreement from her two other friends. The four slowly pull back away from each other, causing Maddie's eyes to connect with her parents and siblings.

She instantly moves towards them, engulfing her family into a group hug, wishing that this perfect moment would never end. Maddie slowly pulls away, tears brimming in her eyes from all the unexpected amount of support she had. As she was in the middle of giving Robby a hug, she notices Axel watching her with a small smile resting on his lips.

The LaRusso girl returns the gesture, her eyes softening when the two made eye contact. However, her attention is quickly drawn away from the Kovačević boy when Gunther taps into the microphone, "Congratulations to our new Sekai Taikai girls champion...Madison LaRusso!"

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Maddie stares intensely as the last round of Miguel and Axel's fight commences. The two previous round going to each fighter, making the score five points for Miguel and fifteen points for Axel. The LaRusso girl could tell that Sensei Wolf and Silver had said something to Axel, especially after watching his come back in the last round. She just hoped in the end, he would fight with honor and not injure another one of her friends.

The referee waves his hand down, signaling for the final round to begin. Axel instantly charges at Miguel, sending a kick towards him which the Diaz boy quickly moves out of the way of. The Kovačević boy turns around, kicking back at his opponent which makes Miguel crouch down to avoid getting hit.

Miguel begins sending his own attacks, causing Axel to fall back on defense. However, the Iron Dragons captain becomes frustrated and impatiently decides to throw another punch which causes the Diaz boy to catch it midway before punching Axel directly in the face, "Point!"

The Diaz boy then starts using his legs, sending a bunch of different kicks towards the Kovačević boy until he lands one directly on Axel's chest, "Point!"

"Come on!" Wolf shouts, making the Kovačević boy go back onto offense as he sends a few punches towards Miguel.

But he ultimately fails when the Diaz boy uses this to his advantage when he sees an open target forming on Axel's chest again. He acts quick, sending a kick and landing another hit, "Point!"

The referee announces as Miguel begins to pivot, making Wolf instantly motion towards the action before shouting towards his student, "There it is!"

Maddie's eyes widen, watching as Silver steps forward this time, "Now! Now! Now!" He demands, causing Axel to slowly turn his head to lock eyes with the LaRusso girl. She inhales sharply, anticipating his decision as her eyes plead for him not to do anything to hurt Miguel.

Axel knew that in order to get Maddie back, he needed to fight with honor and dignity. If he were to hurt another one of her friends, he would lose her forever. And he couldn't have that. So his choice was clear as day. He slowly diverts his gaze away from Maddie, focusing back on his fight with Miguel.

Axel crouches down, going to try and sweep the Diaz boy off his feet which makes Silver and Wolf close their eyes in disappointment. Miguel completes his roundhouse kick, striking the Kovačević boy across the face, "Point!" The referee shouts while the two boys take a breath before getting back into their fighting positions.

After a minute, Axel charges towards Miguel which causes him to quickly move out of the way again. The two switch sides, sending a bunch of attacks towards each other until Miguel finally lands a kick across Axel's face, "Point!"

Miguel doesn't let the Kovačević boy rest as he continues sending more kicks and punches his way. Axel manages to block them all before the Diaz boy grabs him and twists him onto the other side, kneeing him in the stomach when he does so, "That's a point!"

Axel falls backwards onto the mat, causing Miguel to flip over him and land perfectly on his feet. The two boys send a kick towards each other in unison which causes the Kovačević boy to stumble back slightly.

The Diaz boy uses this to his advantage and begins swiping at his feet to make him lose his balance. His plan ultimately works because Axel doesn't expect for Miguel to grab him by his gi to knee him again in his chest, "Point!"

The Diaz boy tosses him to the other side, kicking him in the chest, "Point!" The referee says while Miguel jumps in the air to land another kick across Axel's face. Maddie watches the scoreboard, her eyes widening when she notices the two boys were now tied.

Miguel crouches down onto the mat, a yell escaping his lips before jumping back into the air to send a final kick across his opponents face. Axel falls down onto the mat, blood dripping from his nose as the horn blares throughout the arena. The referee glances towards the Kovačević boy, "Knockdown. Winner!" He says, pointing towards Miguel and making relief instantly wash over him.

The audience cheers loudly at the Diaz boy's victory, all of Miyagi-Do running onto the mat to congratulate him, "Yeah!" Johnny shouts as he runs over towards Miguel before pulling him into a tight hug, "You did it, man! You did it!"

Maddie watches the interaction with a small smile, waiting for her turn to hug her friend, "That was amazing." She tells him, earning a small smile from the Diaz boy in which she returns.

The LaRusso girl's eyes quickly shift over towards Axel, watching as he walks back towards his team with his head held down. Miguel follows her line of sight before slowly turning back around to face her, "Go talk to him." He says, causing Maddie to mouth a quick thank you before rushing off to check in on the Kovačević boy.

Her eyes instantly softening when she sees him sitting by himself. However, Maddie quickly stops in her tracks after seeing Wolf slowly walk over towards him, "I am ashamed to be your sensei." He tells him, making the LaRusso girl instantly step forward.

But Axel beats her to the punch as he quickly stands to be eye level with his sensei, "You are ashamed?" He asks, getting in the man's face before adding, "I am ashamed to be your student. But I never have to feel that shame ever again." He states before he starts to walk away from Wolf, however, he is harshly pulled back.

Axel quickly shoves Wolf's hand off of him, looking him in the eyes one last time before leaving him and his team for good. The Kovačević boy's eyes immediately soften when he sees Maddie standing not too far away. The two slowly meet each other in the center of the mat, "I knew you could do it." He says, causing butterflies to form in the LaRusso girl's stomach.

"Thank you," She tells him, making the Kovačević boy slowly nod at her words, knowing what she was thanking him for. "And maybe you don't need to hear this...But I need to know that I said it," She begins, glancing down towards her hands as she takes a deep breath. The LaRusso girl slowly lifts her head, connecting eyes with Axel as she spoke, "I'm proud of you. I'm proud of us."

Axel smiles softly at the girl's words, especially since he's never heard them before. His parents were barely around, he didn't have that many friends, and his dojo was extremely harsh and strict. After all these years, he finally felt like he wasn't worthless, and that was all because of Madison LaRusso.

He instantly sweeps her off her feet which causes the brunette to smile brightly in his embrace. He slowly brings her back down, their bodies being insanely close to one another where they could feel their breaths fanning each other's faces. Axel's eyes switch between her eyes and her lips, clearly indicating that he wants to kiss her. The brunette notices his actions and leans in to close the gap between them.

Axel pulls her closer, wrapping his hands around her waist as she puts hers around his neck. The two extremely thankful to have each other back in their lives. The two slowly pull away when they hear Gunther tap into the microphone, "May I have your attention?" He begins, causing Maddie to immediately grab Axel's hand to pull him over to where everyone was gathering around.

"What an absolutely thrilling conclusion. Please join me in congratulating our girls and boys champions...Madison LaRusso and Miguel Diaz of Cobra Kai!" Gunther exclaims as the two teenagers hold their trophies in the air. A bright smile forms on Maddie's lips, insanely proud of herself and this huge accomplishment that she has worked so hard for. She slowly looks around the arena, her eyes landing on her family, her friends, and Axel as they cheer and clap loudly for her.

The noise eventually dies down, causing Gunther to speak out again, "This leaves us only to declare our overall dojo champion, but we cannot do that because for the first time in our long and storied history, the Sekai Taikai has ended in a tie!" Maddie quickly turns around to glance at the scoreboard, her eyes widening when she sees both dojos having the same score of one hundred and eighty.

The LaRusso girl shifts her gaze back towards Axel who instantly moves to stand beside her as Gunther continues explaining what that means, "Fortunately, we have a protocol in place for just such an occasion. A winner must be proclaimed. Per tradition, our overall champion will be determined by one final match between the dojos to be fought by their sensei's!" All eyes fall on Johnny Lawrence whose jaw slightly drops at the news, clearly not expecting these turn of events.

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AUTHORS NOTE

Hey guys and welcome to chapter twenty-one of I Can See You!! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter especially after Maddie's win !! Also, my babies are finally made up, I missed them so much. THE LAST CHAPTER IS NEXT IM SO SAD I DON'T WANT TO SAY GOODBYE YET !!

And I'm sorry for not writing Axel & Miguel's entire fight, but this chapter would've been way too long if I did that (Plus I really didn't want to, I only wanted to include the important scenes from that fight)

Now, I did look over this chapter before publishing, but if there are any mistakes I should know about please let me know. Also, don't forget to vote and comment as well, it helps me stay motivated to write, and it's fun to see all the engagement <33

— Brooke