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Johnny’s closet was so bare it was embarrassing. As soon as he opened it, he regretted it, as it only reminded him how pathetic he’d let his life become. The girl he’d been on a few dates with finally saw his apartment and told him he needed to clean up, to get his shit together. Looking into his closet, it was obvious that there wasn’t much to get together. All he had were a couple shirts, some jeans, and two small boxes of random crap.
He pushed the door open the whole way and he saw another box, tucked in the back corner. Gold and silver trophies peaked out of the box. There was a reason this one was tucked in the back – it was hard to look at. He hadn’t looked at the trophies in a while, hadn’t looked through anything in that box in a long time. He didn’t even know what was in there. Maybe it was worth going through; maybe there was something he could pawn off.
Johnny knelt down onto the floor and reached into the back of the closet. He slid the box out enough so he could look through it. He carefully lifted his All-Valley Championship trophies out of the box, ‘83 first, then ‘82. Besides that were a couple of smaller trophies that were given out to everyone at tournaments, and ribbons from when he did junior varsity track and field for a year (he was good, but it distracted him too much from karate.) Under that, there were a couple of old yearbooks. He definitely wouldn’t go through those right now. That was too much.
Layering the bottom of the box was a blue fabric. It looked to be dark blue, but was faded in spots. Johnny didn’t know what the hell it could be. He took out the yearbooks so he could look at the fabric. There was white vinyl on it, and tiny holes in the fabric. It was jersey material, like a football or hockey jersey. Johnny took it out of the box, held it up, trying to figure out what it was.
When he spread it out and saw the full thing, he got the most vivid flashback.
It was the Chargers jersey that he stole from Daniel LaRusso.
~
P.E. was the most boring class in the world. Johnny was stuck taking a class with half juniors and half seniors somehow, and they were all such dorks who couldn’t play any sport. There was no competition, no fun. He usually showed up, showed off, and got out. He explained all this to Dutch and Tommy at lunch.
“Who’s all in that class anyway?” Tommy asked.
“I don’t even know. That weird girl who likes horses a lot, buncha other nerds. Junior football players who are obsessed with me. Oh, and that Daniel LaRusso,” Johnny explained, slowing down as he neared the end of his sentence.
“That dork? Bet you have fun with him right?” Dutch laughed.
“I don’t mess with him, if that’s what you mean,” Johnny shrugged. “Like I said, it’s not even fun. Ooh I could hit him with a ball, big deal.”
Dutch rolled his eyes. “There’s so many things you could do, dude.”
“Like what?”
“Come on, it’s obvious. Steal his shit from the locker room.”
“That’s stupid,” Johnny replied.
“Stealing his clothes, so he doesn’t have clothes to change into?” Dutch sat back in his chair and laughed. “That would be hilarious.”
Johnny thought about it. It was so obvious that it went over his head. He was so focused on more obvious shit like beating the kid up he didn’t even think about other things he could do. This was why he was glad to have his boys.
“That would be,” Johnny thought about it. “Alright, I’ll do it.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah, tomorrow. Why not.”
“Nice, man. Tell us how it goes.”
On his way to the locker room for gym class the next day, Johnny went over the plan in his mind. He was usually the first to change and go up to class, but he’d hang back, get a location on LaRusso, act like he was busy, and wait until everyone else left so he could go through LaRusso’s locker.
All of the boys filtered in, most of them were there before Johnny got there. They were all scrawny guys who were scared to look at him, save for three guys that were actually pretty cool. Johnny made small talk with them; they were football players eager to prove their badassery to the All-Valley karate champ.
There was one scrawny guy who wasn’t afraid to look at Johnny, of course. Daniel LaRusso. He was on the other end of the room, at the second to last locker in the row. Johnny noticed LaRusso’s gaze on him first, and so he glanced at him while he shot the shit with the football guys. LaRusso was wearing a San Diego Chargers jersey, the same one he wore with his nonsense Halloween costume in the fall. Johnny gave his eager classmates attention when necessary, but out of the corner of his eye, he watched LaRusso undress, watched him carefully fold his jersey and set it in his locker. His jeans he cared about far less, throwing them in on top. Johnny couldn’t help but be curious, turning his body so he could watch him while he put his gym clothes on. He popped a thin t-shirt over his head, lifted shorts up his thin legs. He shut his locker and ran a hand through his hair before catching Johnny’s gaze again. Johnny looked away from him, then, and LaRusso ducked his head and left the room.
“Hey, you guys go on, I’ll catch up,” Johnny told his classmates.
They didn’t argue, so desperately wanting to be seen as cool to Johnny that it was annoying. They left, and it was only Johnny in the locker room.
He remembered why he stayed here so long, what he’d decided to do. He had a nagging feeling in his stomach, like he almost didn’t want to steal LaRusso’s clothes anymore for reasons he couldn’t pin down. But he wasn’t a quitter, and he had to report back to Dutch and the boys, so he shut his brain off and did it.
Johnny crossed the room and opened the locker that LaRusso had just been standing in front of. He bit down on his bottom lip, trying to move past that queasy feeling. Was this guilt? For something he hadn’t even done yet?
He reached under LaRusso’s jeans and took the neatly folded jersey. Johnny decided he would let him keep his pants, but he’d be without a shirt, one that was probably meaningful in some way. Or maybe he just thought the jersey looked cool; he wasn’t even from here. Regardless, Johnny only took the jersey. He quickly walked back over to his locker and shoved the jersey in his backpack, balling it up. He shut the locker and took big steps out of the locker room and went to join the class.
Johnny and LaRusso were chosen as team captains for dodgeball. Figures. LaRusso picked all the girls and nerds, and Johnny picked the eager football player underclassmen and everyone else who seemed halfway decent. LaRusso’s team kicked their asses, with LaRusso calling timeouts to huddle his team together and give Johnny dirty looks. Johnny tried to rally his troops, but they were no match for Team Scrawny Dork and their sharpshooter throws.
Johnny hurriedly showered and changed afterwards, sprinting out of the locker room when he was still sopping wet. Everyone thought he was ashamed at losing. The truth was, he was only a little ashamed at losing. The bigger piece of the puzzle, which he’d only admit to himself when he was alone, was that he didn’t want to see LaRusso’s reaction to his jersey being gone.
~
The jersey went right back in the box after Johnny re-discovered it. It got shoved down to the bottom, like the memory attached to it. Johnny carefully nestled it in there with the yearbooks and trophies, effectively covering it up. The jersey and the box it was in stayed in that closet for a decade or so more.
The next time Johnny reached for that box, a lot had changed.
The past had come back to haunt him. Karate was his life again, and it took him a while to figure out the kind of sensei and person he wanted to be. He figured it out, even though there was a lot of blood and hurt feelings involved. And still, Kreese wouldn’t leave him alone, wouldn’t leave the kids alone, was about to do everything in his power to destroy everything Johnny had built that it kind of scared him sometimes…
Oh, and there was LaRusso. He was no small part of the story. The man he hated and envied had become part of his life, at first because their old karate rivalry became fresh again due to their own petty actions and other people’s actions they only found out about later. And then, LaRusso was part of Johnny’s life almost every day because they needed each other’s help to defeat the bigger evil. If you were to ask Johnny at this moment if he hated Daniel, his answer would be no. He still felt animosity towards Daniel for a multitude of reasons, but working with him had also led to a confusing, new, ever-increasing fondness for him. It took several impromptu hangouts and drinks with Daniel for Johnny to find out that he didn’t hate him, that he couldn’t hate him, but he still felt the inexplicable need to push his buttons, push him around a little bit, and keep him on edge sometimes, whatever that meant. But Johnny also liked staying late after class to have dinner with Daniel, whatever that meant.
Bottom line, they were working together now to try and defeat Kreese and Cobra Kai once and for all. Training 4 days a week at Mr. Miyagi’s old dojo, Johnny and Daniel both at the helm. It was disorienting sometimes, both the fact that it was happening and the fact that it was going okay, even with the constant bickering.
It was the end of the second week of teaching together when Johnny looked around the big open room. He saw all of Daniel’s trophies and karate memorabilia from his youth, and he got an idea.
“I need to bring my trophies in here,” Johnny presented it half-jokingly, of course. “Since we’re sharing the space now.”
They were standing in front of the shelf that had Daniel’s All-Valley Champion trophies on it. Daniel tensed his shoulders up immediately, on instinct rushing to fight against something Johnny said. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
Johnny then watched Daniel’s shoulders relax as he exhaled. His face softened, and he shrugged. “Sure. I guess it’s only fair.”
Johnny laughed under his breath. “Well. That was easier than I thought.”
“Just don’t go crazy,” Daniel replied. “No Kreese photos or anything.”
Flinching, Johnny made a face. “Gross. Fuck no.”
They stood facing each other, avoiding each other’s eyes. “Sorry. I don’t know why I said that.”
“It’s fine,” Johnny waved him off. “Old habits and all that.”
They told each other goodbye and that they'd see each other tomorrow.
The next afternoon, Johnny opened his closet and reached for the box in the back with his trophies. He carried it to his car, put it in the passenger seat, and drove to the dojo. He set the box on the floor against the wall in the nice, crisp-smelling room, and then went outside to meet Daniel with a pep in his step.
~
Daniel smiled as he watched Johnny walk away. Actually, it was more like a light jog. They had been sparring after class when all the kids were gone. Daniel had gotten Johnny in a headlock – a loose one – and then Johnny was speaking in a tight voice.
“Okay, okay, pause.”
“What? Why?”
“I really have to pee.”
Daniel laughed and let Johnny down easy, and then Johnny was practically running inside like a little kid. Daniel followed him in, needing to cool off.
He looked around the peaceful dojo. He grabbed a neatly-folded towel off the one low-hanging shelf and wiped the sweat off his face, off the back of his neck. Daniel noticed a box on the floor across the room, up against the wall, near where he kept his trophies. There were some trophies that looked similar sticking up out of the box. Johnny must’ve actually brought his own, like they talked about yesterday. Daniel smiled. He set the towel he was holding on the floor and knelt next to the box.
He gently reached for the first trophy. Sure enough, it belonged to Johnny Lawrence, All-Valley Champion, 1982. The next one, 1983. Tournaments that Daniel had no part of whatsoever. He’d have to ask Johnny about them one of these days. Daniel set the trophies next to each other on the floor neatly.
After that, he rooted around the box, found some other small trophies and ribbons. Daniel’s eyes widened when he read the back. First place in the boys 100m dash, 1982. That wasn’t all that surprising. Daniel knew first hand that Johnny could run fast back in the day.
There were some yearbooks, which Daniel wasn’t that interested in. That would be too much for right now, maybe some other day. He noticed a strip of fabric peeking out from under the one, though. He pulled it, always so curious. It kept going, and there was enough fabric that it lifted the books out of place. Daniel kept pulling until it was all out of the box. It was flimsy blue fabric. He rubbed his thumbs over the silky material as he shook it out, its color faded in certain patches.
And then he saw the lightning bolts on the shoulders, the white vinyl stripes and numbers, and he felt like he got punched in the stomach.
All of the years that he’d looked for this jersey came flooding back. All of the years he wondered where it went. The period of time that he felt like he was crazy for misplacing the jersey. The jersey was a gift from his mom after a particularly hard week at school; she found it at a consignment shop. Daniel thought about how, when he told his mom and Mr. Miyagi about the jersey’s disappearance, they both told him it was unlikely that someone took it, because that would be silly, because Daniel’s bullies seem to only work with their fists. All those years thinking he was a forgetful idiot, and here Johnny fucking Lawrence had it the entire time.
Upon hearing footsteps behind him, Daniel dropped the old jersey back into the box.
Daniel stood up and turned around to face his rival-slash-partner, old anger surging through his bones as though it were new. He walked towards Johnny as Johnny spoke with a relaxed smile.
“Alright, I’m ready for round two, and this time will be a little harder, ‘cause now I don’t feel like I’m going to piss myself –”
Daniel lunged at him, landing a punch to Johnny’s stomach that made him stagger backward. Johnny looked confused for one second before matching Daniel’s anger, his temper quick as ever. He hit back and Daniel blocked him, their long arms tangling, and soon they were sparring in a way that wasn’t playful and easygoing, but the exact opposite. They moved on instinct, and Daniel was more offensive than he’d ever been in a fight. He was just so angry and hurt and he couldn’t believe the discovery he made.
As soon as Daniel got the opportunity, he delivered a roundhouse kick to Johnny’s side, which sent him to the floor. Daniel wasn’t expecting that; Johnny was really out of it this time, disoriented, confused. He lay on his back, and Daniel climbed on top of him.
“What the fuck, man?” Johnny groaned as Daniel roughly grabbed his wrists, slamming them down on the mat on either side of Johnny’s head.
“What the fuck is your problem?” Daniel asked, breathless. “Why do you have that jersey?”
“Huh?”
“Don’t play dumb with me, why -” Daniel searched Johnny’s face, but he saw nothing but wide, confused blue eyes, his parted mouth, his blond hair all messed up on his forehead. “Why did you take my Chargers jersey, you asshole!”
Recognition set in on Johnny’s face then. He furrowed his brow and pursed his lips. His hands flexed against Daniel’s hold, and he looked away from Daniel’s face, not wanting to meet his eyes.
“I did it – I don’t know why I did it. My friends told me to. It was a stupid prank. I’m sorry,” Johnny said, the words rushing out fast, all slurred together.
“You could’ve given it back, wh – that jersey meant a lot to me, you know. I should’ve known it was you, who else would’ve done it,” Daniel rambled. Despite himself, his grip on Johnny’s wrists loosened, he slumped his back forward. He was tired. Tired that he was still dealing with all the little hurts from high school and tired because it was always Johnny who found a way to hurt him, always.
“I don’t know why I didn’t give it back. I just didn’t want to face you, because I was a coward, and I guess I still am. LaRusso, I’m –” Johnny met Daniel’s eyes again. Big brown eyes that were just as wild and hurt as they were over thirty years ago when Johnny would slam him against lockers and chain link fences. Johnny felt so bad. It was the guilt he felt before he even stole Daniel’s jersey times a hundred. He wanted to crawl out of his skin, to run away and hide like always, but he couldn’t do that anymore, not when he and Daniel had gotten to this point.
“Daniel, I’m sorry!” Johnny said with his whole chest. “I should’ve given it back to you – I shouldn’t have fuckin’ taken it in the first place. And I’m sorry I hurt you. I hurt you so much, and I’m sorry.”
“Yeah, you did,” Daniel replied, his voice full of bite. A moment later, his face softened, and he let go of Johnny’s wrists, placing his palms on the mat. He met Johnny’s eyes, found them welling with tears. When he spoke, his voice was gritty, like he’d been shouting for hours. “I accept your apology. And – and I know I hurt you, too. I’m sorry. I really am.”
Daniel didn’t know what to do. He felt his own eyes watering. He couldn’t stand to look at Johnny anymore, he felt too vulnerable, so he did the first thing he thought of – he leaned down and buried his face in Johnny’s neck. He didn’t know how else to say he was sorry, that he forgave him, didn’t know how else to deal with the emotions that the whole jersey thing had brought up. He felt so raw, and so did Johnny.
Johnny’s hands reached up to settle on Daniel’s back, like he was hugging him, or at least trying to. Daniel got out of his awkward straddling position so he could lay down on top of Johnny and accept his hug. Johnny squeezed Daniel’s midsection for a while, then moved his hand to the back of his head. He closed his eyes and pretended that he was hugging high school Daniel too, hoping that maybe, in the smallest way, the Daniel from back then would feel it.
Daniel initiated them rolling over after a while, onto their sides, and from there they sat up. They both felt dizzy, tired, ragged. Johnny sat with one leg crossed, the other stretched out. Daniel looked at him for a moment before he crawled over to him, crawled into his lap. This way, he could actually hug Johnny the way he wanted to, the way he needed to. He wrapped his arms around Johnny’s broad chest and clasped his hand over his wrist at Johnny’s lower back. Johnny’s hands splayed out on Daniel’s back for a few moments, but he quickly gave in to the impulse to hug him fiercely.
The longer the hug went on, the more healed they felt. Daniel felt like a crack in his heart had been sealed up. The deep guilt Johnny had carried with him for decades seemed to fade away. Eventually, they pulled back from each other. Daniel eased off Johnny’s lap enough that he wasn’t sitting on him anymore, but his legs were still draped over his thighs. They regarded each other fondly for a few moments before Daniel moved to stand up. He went over to the box on the floor, picked up the jersey, and then went back to Johnny, sitting on the floor in front of him. Daniel held out the jersey by the shoulders, then laid it across both their laps.
“You kept it in really nice condition,” he said. “I’ll give you that much.”
“Well, I never touched it, and it sat in the dark,” Johnny explained, leaning forward and examining the jersey. “Except for those loose stitches there, it looks great.”
Johnny pointed to an area under the armpits that looked particularly frayed. Daniel huffed out a laugh. “Wonder how that got there. Surely, it wasn’t the guy in the skeleton costume who picked me up only by this jersey. No way.”
“Okay, Mr. Sarcastic,” Johnny replied. “So aside from the damage I did, it looks great.”
“Seriously though, why…” Daniel trailed off, looking over the garment again and then at Johnny. “Why did you take it? It just doesn’t seem like you. I mean, that’s the kind of prank I would do.”
Johnny laughed, remembering the shower head, and the pie on his chair. “You got that right.”
“So, why?”
Johnny couldn’t lie to Daniel’s open, earnest, impossibly young-looking face. “Dutch dared me to, and you know I was so afraid of backing down from anything back then that I did it. Had a moment where I almost didn’t though. As for why I kept it…”
Johnny trailed off. That answer was harder, more complicated, more evolving as the years wore on.
“I didn’t want to face you. And maybe there was some weird part of me that liked having it. I mean, shit, it still smells like you.”
Daniel almost choked on air. “What? That’s ridiculous. No way.”
Daniel lifted the jersey up to his nose to smell it. He took a tentative whiff, and his face immediately lit up. He almost jumped up with how excited it made him. “Oh my god, it does. That’s - that’s that cheap laundry detergent and that Reseda apartment.”
“Told you,” Johnny replied smugly.
“Wait a second,” Daniel narrowed his eyes. He reached out and playfully slapped Johnny on the chest, letting his hand linger. “How did you know that it still smells like me?
“Well, I, uh,” Johnny stumbled for a bit, eventually flashing that popular boy smile Daniel knew all too well by now. “I have a really good sense of smell. Didn’t even have to take it out of the box, you know.”
“Right, right,” Daniel nodded sarcastically.
“I actually totally forgot it was in there,” Johnny’s voice turned serious again. “I remembered when I was driving here today. I was thinking about what I was gonna say to you, I was gonna give it back.”
“Really,” Daniel smiled at him, not believing it at first.
“Yes!” Johnny replied. “I swear.”
“For real?”
“Yes,” Johnny absentmindedly reached out for the jersey. He held onto it with Daniel, his fingers brushing up against Daniel’s. “And I was gonna tell you… well, what I told you after you jumped me.”
“I would’ve jumped you regardless.”
“I don’t blame you, getting a bomb dropped on you like that… ” Johnny trailed off, speaking softly. “You know the real question is - does it still fit?”
Daniel’s mouth dropped open. He stared at Johnny for a moment before erupting into laughter. “I...can’t believe you.”
Johnny grabbed onto Daniel’s hands excitedly. “Come on.”
Daniel didn’t need much convincing. He stood up, taking the jersey with him. He stared at Johnny for a moment before telling him, “Don’t laugh.”
“I won’t laugh. I’ll even look away,” Johnny dramatically turned his head to the side. Daniel held the jersey between his knees while he lifted his gray long sleeve t-shirt up and over his head. Johnny remembered that day in high school, down in the locker room before P.E., when he glanced at Daniel while he was changing. He made the same type of glance now, trying not to seem obvious. Johnny got a look just before he put the jersey on – Daniel was still slim, had some lean muscle in the shoulders that wasn’t there in high school, and a little bit of a tummy.
The jersey fit. It wasn’t as loose-fitting as it was back then, but it appeared that Daniel still had some breathing room. It wasn’t as long as it used to be either, it hit just above Daniel’s natural waistline now. With the grey jogger sweatpants he was wearing and his messy hair, he looked like he did behind that silly shower curtain at the Halloween dance, magically aged up a couple decades.
Daniel felt comfortable to be in the outfit again, although the fact that Johnny Lawrence was looking up at him full of affection upon seeing him in it was a bit new. Johnny sat up straighter and looked Daniel up and down for another moment before practically jumping to his feet. Johnny was ageless in the way he bounded over to Daniel and took both his hands in his.
“Johnny, what are you –”
“Shut up for a second.”
Daniel closed his mouth. Johnny looked at his feet for a moment and then started to talk, his thumbs brushing over Daniel’s knuckles.
“You know, back then, I actually thought your jersey was really cool. And I had this thought that like, maybe if things were different, or if I was different, I could’ve just told you that I liked it, instead of stealing it from you, and then maybe we could be...friends.”
Daniel never thought he’d be the reason that Johnny ever blushed, or was having a hard time speaking. He stepped closer to him, feeling heat flood his own cheeks. “You could always try that now.”
“Yeah,” Johnny looked amazed, like he hadn’t thought of that before. He then straightened his posture and took another step towards Daniel. He gestured with their conjoined hands as he talked, out of both nervousness and excitement.
“Hey... Daniel. I really like that jersey. You a Chargers fan?”
Daniel suddenly felt like he was a teenager again, trying to flirt with his crush. “Thanks. Uh, no, I just thought it looked cool. I know nothing about football.”
“No way, me either. It’s - it’s so confusing to me,” Johnny replied, 100% earnestly.
“Me too! It’s like, there’s so many rules, guys running in all different directions, I don’t get it.”
“I know, right? But the jersey is so cool. Where’d you get it?”
“Thrifting. Guess someone didn’t want it anymore. My mom found it,” Daniel replied. He forgot that Johnny didn’t know that part of the story until he saw the look of astonishment that cast over his eyes for a moment.
Johnny sat with the new information for a moment, then smiled at Daniel. “So, um, do you want to, I don’t know, hang out with me sometime?”
At this point, Daniel felt like they were more their present-day selves talking than their high school selves. “I’d like that. What do you have in mind?”
“A movie? Golf ‘n Stuff?” Johnny floated ideas. “A football game? Whatever you want.”
“Golf ‘n Stuff is fun,” Daniel replied with a laugh. He then got an idea that Johnny would surely appreciate. He ducked his head and batted his eyelashes a bit. “Will you pick me up on your motorcycle?”
Johnny looked at his feet and laughed under his breath. When he looked back up at Daniel, his face was flushed pink, and he pulled Daniel closer. Daniel met him halfway, wrapping his arms around Johnny’s neck. Johnny settled his hands at Daniel’s narrow hips.
“Yeah, I’ll pick you up on my motorcycle,” he said.
Daniel glanced at Johnny's lips and began to lean in. “Perfect.”
“Perfect,” Johnny repeated before closing the gap between them and sealing his lips over Daniel’s.
Daniel’s mouth was warm and perfect, and he tasted like that stupid fruit-infused water he drinks. The kiss was sweeter than either of them ever thought they could be with each other. Johnny ran his tongue along Daniel’s with curiosity and bewilderment that they’d arrived here, that he really was in his arms, that he really had his hands up and under that jersey, touching Daniel’s soft skin.
And Daniel? Well, Daniel felt downright smitten, practically giddy over Johnny’s flirting and his big hands on his waist and how passionate he was. Daniel held Johnny’s face in his hands, his jawline a little rough from his five o’clock shadow.
He found himself wanting more, wanting Johnny’s hands in more places, but it was getting late and they had stuff to do tomorrow. So, Daniel was the first one to pull back. Johnny chased after him, giving him a few final pecks on the lips. Daniel giggled and held him at arms length, as much as he wanted to keep going.
“If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it the right way,” Daniel explained.
“Which is…?”
“You taking me on that date and letting things progress from there,” Daniel grinned.
“Oh, jeez. This is a revenge thing, isn’t it? A power thing. You want to make me wait for it,” Johnny said, perfectly reading his mind.
“How’d you know?” Daniel sighed.
“Guess by now I just know you,” Johnny smiled. He leaned in and pressed his forehead to Daniel’s, trying to angle for another kiss. So stubborn, so persistent. Daniel couldn’t resist letting him have at it for another moment before gently pushing him away.
“Okay, I mean it,” Daniel laughed. “We have a big day tomorrow, remember? We’ve gotta go shopping for –”
“Wood boards,” Johnny finished his sentence. “I almost forgot. Ooh, can that be our first date?”
“Buying a bunch of wood at Lowe’s, that sounds… perfect, actually,” Daniel replied with a smirk.
“Okay, I gotta get out of here,” Johnny leaned in to kiss Daniel once on the forehead, “Or else I’m gonna rip that jersey off of you.”
Johnny went to grab his duffle bag and gave Daniel one last fond look before hurrying out the door.
“Ten AM, don’t be late!” Daniel called after him, smiling so hard his cheeks hurt.
~
Johnny walked over to Daniel and hugged him from behind. “Alright, how’d I do?”
Daniel accepted Johnny’s arms around his waist, placing his hands over them. “You did good, handyman.”
They both were looking at Daniel’s old Chargers jersey that they decided to place in a shadowbox and hang on the wall in the dojo. It was too important for them and their relationship now for it to sit in a box for another minute. And if Daniel wore it any more, it would surely fall apart. On the wall behind glass, it would be safe – they were both going to make sure that no karate wars between teenagers would break out and destroy the room again.
~
For Daniel’s birthday that year, Johnny got him a brand-new Chargers jersey. The look on his face was worth the outrageous price alone.
“Fun fact, they’re the LA Chargers now. Which, you know, kinda works out,” Johnny said while Daniel was smiling at the jersey in his hands.
“Funny how that worked out,” Daniel replied.
“Another fun fact, I bought that online, by myself. Miguel didn’t even have to help me,” Johnny bragged, grinning from ear to ear.
“Get out,” Daniel turned his smile to Johnny. “I’m so proud of you.”
After that, at Johnny’s urging, Daniel put the jersey on. It fit loosely, but not too loose. It wasn’t the old one from 1984, but it was still perfect. He stood up and modeled it for Johnny, and Johnny couldn’t resist wrapping his arms around Daniel, lifting him up and spinning him around the living room.
“You look good,” Johnny said once he set him down, hands coming up to frame Daniel’s face.
Daniel leaned up to kiss Johnny once. “Thank you.”
“Hey, Daniel, I think your jersey is really cool. Do you wanna go out with me sometime?” Johnny teased.
“Actually,” Daniel pressed his lips against Johnny’s ear so he could whisper, “You can just take me to bed right now.”
“Works for me,” Johnny said, and they both smiled and laughed into another kiss.