Chapter Text
Thanks for reading my story! Big spoilers ahead for the end of Season 4
***
Tory sat in her car listening to the radio, the engine off and her hands on the steering wheel. She was parked several houses down from Kyler's house—it was the closest parking she could find—but if she turned her music down she could hear the crappy techno booming from his house. She shook her head. They were definitely going to get a noise complaint. But that's not what was bothering her. She thought back to what she had seen and overheard: that Sensei Silver had paid off one of the judges to rule the fight in her favor. And she remembered the hit Sam scored as she backed up, when her foot had crossed the line. The judge had ruled it out of bounds, and in the moment she had been glad for that decision, but now she wasn't so sure. The points she had scored she felt sure of—and she hadn't even gone after Sam's good eye—but what if Silver hadn't paid off the judge? Would the fight have ended with a third point for Sam? It wouldn't have been so bad if the judge had awarded her an unfair point—if he'd scored a strike that Sam blocked, for instance—because then who could say who would have won the last point? But if he had scored the bout fairly, more and more she felt sure the fight should have been over sooner, and it should never have gotten to that final kick to the midsection.
Her phone dinged, and she already had a feeling who it was going to be before she checked it: a message from Robby said, "Are you coming in?" She looked up like she could see him from that distance. He must have seen her car, but she couldn't see where he was.
Sitting in the car wasn't going to make her feel any better, and maybe a couple of drinks was just what she needed to take her mind off of it. Tory sighed and got out of the car. She walked up the path toward the house and knocked on the door. There was no answer. She pushed it open and stepped inside.
"Hey! The Queen of the Valley is here!" Kyler crowed from across the room. The house seemed full; there were more than just Cobra Kais here. Kyler snaked through the crowd. He handed her a red cup and she didn't ask what was in it before drinking. "How are you feeling?"
"Have you seen Robby?" she asked, trying to play it off.
A grin spread across Kyler's face. "Oh, I see how it is. I haven't seen him yet."
"What?" Tory stepped away, sipping the drink absent-mindedly. It tasted like nail polish remover and Gatorade, and she shook her head as she set it down to fish out her phone. There was another text from Robby. "I was thinking we could talk before we go in." And then, just as she was looking at her phone, another message popped up: "nm" No wonder he knew she wasn't at the party: he must have also been outside. What had kept him late after the tournament? She had some ideas.
Tory groaned and went to the door. "Hey, you're leaving already?" someone called from behind her, but she ignored him. She picked out Robby's car—it was on the other side of the street—and as she walked over he got out and leaned against it.
"You didn't have to actually leave the party," he said, his winning smirk not hiding something deeper in his eyes.
"What's going on?" she asked, trying to play it cool as she leaned against the car beside him.
"Oh, I just..." He trailed off, folded his arms, unfolded them, then jerked his thumb over his shoulder back towards the stadium. "I talked to my dad."
"Oh, shit," Tory said.
"No, it's not like that." Robby's eyes got wider, and he hurried to say, "It was actually... I mean, I wouldn't say good, but it's been a while since we talked, you know?"
Tory's brow wrinkled and gave him a quizzical look, asking, "What was it about?"
"There's just some things I wanted to get off my chest," he said. For the first time, Tory saw that there were tear tracks on his face. "I..." Robby turned his face away, his lip twitching. "It's stupid."
"It's not stupid," she said. She leaned over, her face serious, trying to look into his eyes. "Tell me."
"I just... I thought I was helping Kenny. I didn't want him to go through what I went through. But he's just getting angry and full of hate, the same as me. And I'm afraid if he stays with Cobra Kai..."
"He's gonna end up in juvie?"
Robby winced, but nodded. "Yeah," he said, looking a bit hurt, but honest. It was disarming.
Tory raised her eyebrows and gave him a push on the shoulder. "Or All Valley Champ. Cobra Kai got us to where we are. And don't think I didn't see you hesitate in your match against Lip. If you hit him when you had the chance, we'd be King and Queen of the Valley. I kind of like the sound of that."
He raised his eyebrows and his shoulders at the same time, letting them fall together. "There's always next year, right?"
Tory frowned. "That's it? 'There's always next year?' That's not how a winner thinks."
Robby shook his head and leaned away. "I ... guess? I hoped I was talking to you, not Kreese or Silver." Tory winced. Ouch. "Anyway, I'm just... not really feeling the party? Do you want to maybe just go to a movie or something?"
"Go to a movie?" Tory scoffed. "I just won the All Valley Tournament. I am definitely getting plastered and making some bad decisions, and I really hope you'll be there to be one of them." She grinned as she leaned in towards him, pivoting to put him between herself and the car. "Remember Prom?"
"I'm just... not in the mood right now." Robby put a hand on her shoulder. He was gentle about it, but it still made her lips tighten. When she opened her mouth, about to say something out of her stung pride, he quickly added, "I've got a lot on my mind, okay?"
She groaned. He looked so soulful and earnest that she couldn't even be mad at him, not really. "Fine," she growled. "But if you're not here to make sure I don't do anything dumb, don't be surprised what you see on socials tomorrow."
"Let's be honest," he said, glancing at the house with a grimace, "I'll probably be seeing it live."
She trailed a finger down his chest. "You could have seen it in 3D," she said, tilting her head with a teasing smirk. "If you had less on your mind." She poked him in the sternum.
"Ouch," he said, wincing.
"Don't be a baby. I get it. Go drive around or stare at the ceiling or whatever you need to do."
He grinned a bit weakly. "No, I mean ouch. I got this big bruise right there."
"Oh. Sorry." She bit her lip. "See you tomorrow?"
He tipped his head with a pained expression, raising his eyebrows. "No choice. We've got that History quiz."
"Right." In previous years the tournament had been after school, but classes had gotten pushed back because school had been shut for a while after the incidents.
She started walking backwards towards the house and pointed a finger at him with a sly smile. "I'll try not to kill THOSE brain cells."
He laughed. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."
"I think that's a pretty short list."
They both laughed, and Tory turned back towards the house. Still, as she got to the door, she turned back to watch him drive off. Did she just turn down a make-out session? Or listening to Robby talk about his feelings? She was feeling bad for a moment, but then she thought what if he wanted to talk about Sam or the LaRussos? She must have heard that name a hundred times that day. She shook her head and opened the door.
"Look who's back!" someone cheered, and someone else handed her a fresh drink. Tory took a long sip. She was champion: it was time to act like it.
***
The next day, Tory sighed as she opened her locker to get her books. She knew other kids were looking at her and whispering. Winning the championship had been a mixed blessing; at least kids had something else to focus on other than the school rumble that had taken place the previous year. From somewhere behind her, someone said, "It's no wonder she won. Beating people up is all she knows." She slammed her locker with a groan of frustration that made it so even more people were looking. She rolled her eyes at herself. Now she had to put her code back in to get her books out. She almost wished she could blame it on the hangover, but she'd only had a couple of drinks before leaving the party. Without Robby there to waste time with, she just wasn't feeling it.
Speak of the devil.... "Point! Winner Nichols," Robby was leaning against the lockers, his arms folded. "Oo, tough break for Locker. Couldn't even score one point. Another clean sweep for Nichols. When will Locker learn?"
Tory gave him a look between annoyance and fondness, pressing her lips together as she wrenched her locker open for the second time and started shifting books into her bag. "You're gonna be late for class."
"So will you," he said, the smirk only growing.
"I'll see you later." She walked away from him, trying not to smile.
"Hey, Tory, wait up!" he called after her.
"Later, loser." She gave him the finger over her shoulder and kept walking, so he couldn't see her grin. "I only hang out with champions!"
"Oh, come on," he said, jogging to catch up. "For one thing, I'm pretty sure that limits you to Eli and Miguel...."
Tory growled and turned on him. Before he could say anything in his defense, she took a quick breath and held up her hands. "I'd better be nicer to you, if those are my choices. Sorry."
He stopped, his arms hanging limp at his sides. "You are?" he asked, confused.
"Yes, I am," she said. She put a hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow. "Is that such a surprise?"
"Kind of?" he admitted.
"I'll see you at lunch," she said as she turned around, strutting through the now mostly-empty halls towards her class.
When she walked in, the teacher stopped in the middle of writing something on the board. "You're late. You know you're already on thin ice, Nichols," she growled.
Tory bit back a scathing retort. "Sorry. I had trouble with my locker," she mumbled, and made her way to the only empty seat in the class. The worst part about coming back after the semester had started: she had no control over where she was sitting. And that seat happened to be beside Samantha LaRusso, who was very definitely avoiding eye contact, pretending to be diligently copying everything down that the teacher was saying. Then again, this was Samantha LaRusso. She probably WAS diligently copying down everything the teacher was saying. Tory rolled her eyes and got out her notebook. Whatever she was feeling, she had to pass this class, even if that meant setting everything else aside.
The teacher turned back towards the class. "This brings us to your homework for today. Please open your notebooks. LaRusso, what did you have for your answer to the first question on the homework?"
Sam visibly slumped. Even LaRusso wasn't feeling confident? Tory smirked. That was a first. Still, Sam looked up meekly, head almost bowed, and said, "Tybalt."
"That's correct," the teacher said. "LaRusso, please hand it to the front of the class."
Tory tried not to look at Sam, who she thought must be giving her a smug look. She refused to give Sam the satisfaction. She stiffened and gasped when the teacher called her several students later. "What about you, Nichols?"
Tory hadn't even opened her notebook. She started flipping pages desperately. Had she even remembered to do the homework? "Um..." she found the most recent page. "Mercutio."
"Well, that's better than nothing, but I'm going to need you to explain why you chose him."
Tory's mouth fell open in indignation. "You didn't make her—I mean, them—explain their answers!"
"No, but I'm asking you to." The teacher's eyebrows shot up. "Is that going to be a problem, Nichols? Are you only a champion with your fists and not your mind? Or did you maybe have one of your lackeys do the homework for you?" There were a few whispers in the classroom. Tory's cheeks flamed.
"I don't need to cheat," Tory said, a bit too loudly. She wished she had taken a minute to look over her notes before class. Too late now. Involuntarily, she glanced at LaRusso, just to see the smug look on her dumb—but Sam's notebook was open. And on the closest edge of her desk. And each of her answers was carefully annotated....
Tory looked away, back at her own notebook. "Umm..." She tried to think of the answer. The best she could do was, "Because once Mercutio died, Romeo felt he had to kill Tybalt, and then there was no going back."
The teacher nodded, satisfied. "Acceptable, but you said Romeo felt he had to kill him. Remember what we talked about in the last class, about being star-crossed: do you think Romeo had a choice?"
Tory looked at Sam out of the corner of her eye before answering. Sam was looking straight back at her with an unreadable expression. "No, I guess he didn't."
"That's right. Now, for the next question...."
When class was over, Tory shoved her things in her bag and was already slinging it over her shoulder as she got up from her desk. She absolutely didn't want to be leaving at the same time or later than LaRusso. But then she heard that all-too-familiar voice calling from behind her, sounding somehow soft and sickly sweet even when shouting across a classroom, "Tory!"
Tory turned, all too aware from the burning in her cheeks that everyone in the classroom had heard Sam. "What?" she demanded.
Sam hurried up to her, closing her own bag hurriedly. "I thought we could talk." She tucked some of her brown hair behind her ear in that nervous way she had.
"I've got nothing to say to you, LaRusso," Tory snapped, turning on her heel and stalking out into the hallway.
But Sam hurried after her. "I heard what you said after you won."
Tory stopped, the hot feeling suddenly turning to ice, like she had just had a bucket dumped on her head. "Huh?" she asked, and immediately mentally kicked herself. Could she sound any dumber?
"I'm okay, just a little bruised." Sam didn't quite look her in the eye. "And, for what it's worth, I don't think you hit me in the eye on purpose."
Some part of Tory just wanted to accept the apology. It just wasn't how she was wired. "What do you care?" Her eyebrows arched up, and she put a hand on her hip. "The judge didn't detract a point, so clearly he didn't think it was a big deal." Right as the words left her lips, that sudden thought came right back to her: but what if he would have, if Silver hadn't paid him off?
Sam stammered a moment. "I know, but I wanted to tell you that I don't hold it against you."
"Why would you hold it against me?" Tory asked with a sneer. Deep down, Tory felt genuinely bad about it. Looking at Sam's round little face all screwed up with annoyance, though, Tory just couldn't get there. It felt too much like letting LaRusso win, and for once Tory winning just felt too good to let go of. "It's a karate tournament. These things happen. It's not a slap fight."
Sam gave her one of her patented looks of cold condescension. "I guess I couldn't expect you to expect to win clean."
Tory's face flamed. "What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, balling up her right hand.
Sam's eyes went wide. She clearly hadn't expected that to hit quite so hard. Before she could say anything, a teacher's voice cut through the students milling in the hall. "LaRusso! Nichols! Don't you have somewhere to be?"
"Yeah," said Tory, not to the teacher but to Sam. She shouldered past her, making sure to jostle her on the way. "I do." With her back to her, Sam couldn't see that her cheeks were burning and she was biting her lip. Why did LaRusso always get under her skin? She groaned. And now she had that History test to worry about.
Tory was loading her books into her locker before lunch, sighing and shaking her head. When she closed the locker, she jumped, because Robby had been waiting behind the locker door.
"Jeez! You're sneaky. Is that something they taught you at Miyagi-Do?"
"Maybe. It was mostly circling. Let me show you." Robby circled in and around her until he was kissing her.
Tory kissed him with her eyes shut, but as she opened them after they leaned apart, she spotted a familiar face over his shoulder. Like she didn't already have Miyagi-Do on her mind as it was.
"Was it that bad?" Robby asked, looking hurt.
"It wasn't you," Tory said, shouldering her bag in a huff. "Come on. I don't want to be late." She stomped towards the cafeteria.
"You know someone will just let us cut ahead," Robby said, hurrying after her. It was true. At least with the Cobra Kais around she never had to worry about not having a place to sit at lunch.
"I know," she said. "Let's just say I don't want to—" She looked over her shoulder to see if Sam could hear—she was speaking loud enough—and as she started to turn back she ran straight into Devon Lee.
They both went sprawling, limbs tangling, their bags swinging them both off balance. As Tory got back up, with Robby helping her, Devon got back to her feet before either of them could offer her a hand. With just six weeks of training, she had really learned to take a fall and spring back up like a champ. Tory stood looking at her wide-eyed: she knew she had a reputation as a bully as it was, and here was someone she didn't really know, and she'd all but confirmed it....
But then Devon stuck out her hand. "I just wanted to say congratulations on the win. You fought really well." She had somehow managed to recover and act like they hadn't even made contact.
"Thanks," said Tory, taking her hand after a second. The handshake was firm and polite. She eyed Devon suspiciously, waiting for the next part. She realized she was waiting for Devon to say 'But you wouldn't have won if it would have been a fair fight.'
"I look forward to next year," Devon finished. At least she hadn't kept holding on to her hand like a teen movie villain.
Well, there it was, but compared to what had been running through her mind, Tory was almost relieved. "Me too," she said. She hurried by, almost running. She didn't want to look back to see if Sam had seen. The last thing she needed was to see that cute face.
***
The History test was a blur. She sat sucking on the pencil eraser or chewing on the pencil, trying to concentrate on the papers in front of her. She had studied—she felt bad enough with a volunteer looking in on her mom while she was at school, so she had to make the most of it—but her thoughts kept going off on their own paths. She hadn't been watching her feet—she had been looking at Sam, the way she had been taught—but she knew Sam's punch had knocked her back, and that her back foot had gone over the line when the ref called it. Had he really called it her way because of the bribe? She tried to think back to every other moment in the fight, to moves that had been counted as blocked but that might have scored, to every point she and Sam had scored. Then she thought of that elbow to the face. Tory really had struck out without thinking, that part she was sure about, but she remembered hearing Johnny Lawrence yell that it should have been a point deduction. She tried to push the thought down. Maybe she was just letting her demons eat away at her, letting them taint her victory and take her triumph away from her. Was it possible the judge hadn't pushed things in her favor? No—Silver had sounded too pleased with the judge's calls. He must have known at least one call went her way when it shouldn't have.
The teacher called for them to hand in their tests. Tory groaned. As they got up to go, she tried to hurry: she knew Robby would ask her how the test went, and she didn't want to admit she didn't even get to the last questions. She hoped there hadn't been an essay question at the end.
"Hey, wait up!" she heard him call, but she was already on her way out. Maybe if she skipped her locker and went straight to her car... No, she had stuff she needed to study. But she still went on. She knew Robby had been watching—everyone had been watching—and she didn't want to talk to anyone who had been there. She pushed through the front doors, trying not to look back to see if Robby was following her and telling herself she could download the books she needed online.
But she didn't go to her car. She didn't know exactly why she did it, other than that if she didn't get answers, she wouldn't be able to sleep, and with summer vacation coming up she didn't have a lot of time left.
She didn't know what expression it was that passed across Sam's face when she saw Tory waiting by her car. Annoyance? Frustration? They all looked so similar, that scrunched-up look with the furrowed brow and a lot of pout. Tory physically fought to resist rolling her eyes.
"What do you want?" Sam snapped.
The words spilled out of Tory. She wanted to say something—anything—to establish just where they stood with each other. Why else would she be waiting by Sam's car after class? "Now that Miguel's gone, you'd better not start making a move on Robby."
"Miguel's not gone, he's—traveling," Sam said, managing to look angry and confused at the same time. "And I don't want Robby."
"Don't think I didn't see you staring at him at Prom." Tory pouted at Sam mockingly. "Since when was a LaRusso satisfied when there was still something she wanted that she couldn't have?"
Sam huffed. There it was, that brightening of her eyes when she got upset. "That's not fair. You got the stupid trophy, didn't you? And I didn't say anything."
"Because you were trying too hard not to cry." Tory rolled her eyes.
Sam's face tightened even more, and she shook her head with lots of brow furrow. "This isn't you, Tory. You weren't gloating after the match. You tried to check on me."
"Maybe I just wanted to make sure your Mom wasn't going to come hassle me again."
Sam raised her eyebrows and dropped her shoulders, like she felt sorry for Tory. "Who are you trying to convince, me or you?"
Tory's mouth fell open. She stood there for a minute without anything to say, and she looked around to make sure no one saw that dumb LaRusso had left her speechless. She asked in an undertone, "Well, um, was I out of bounds when you hit me?"
"What?"
Tory sucked on her teeth and glanced around again. She asked, faster and only slightly louder. "Was my foot over the line when your punch landed?"
Sam hesitated, taking a step back and half-turning her face away. "What, you want me to say the call was fair?"
Tory was surprised, and she knew it showed on her face. "No." She tried to change that look to one of casual contempt. "I don't care what you think, I just don't want you spreading rumors, okay?"
Sam scoffed. Tory had seen scoffs like that in the mirror. She tried to remember if Sam did things like that when they first met. "Don't worry. I'm not going to tell anyone you don't deserve it. The judge made a call, and I'm not a sore loser." But there was a flash of something in her eyes. Pain? Disappointment? Wow, she really had wanted it.
Almost as much as Tory had. And now she had it. But that didn't ease the sour feeling in her belly. She tried to push her, making it sound like she was just trying to get a rise out of her. "But you think I wasn't over the line, don't you?"
"Yeah." Sam nodded, her lips pressed together. There was that look of ... compassion? More like pity. "I do."
"Whatever." Tory turned around and stomped towards her car. This was a mistake. She shouldn't have–
"And you do, too."
Tory stopped in her tracks. She looked back at Sam. She was standing there, arms crossed, looking at her, like she expected Tory to say something.
"You don't have to pretend with me," Sam said. "I know you're not happy with the decision. You think it was unfair. So do I."
"I..." Tory took a deep breath, and then another. She knew she was going to have to say it, and she knew she was going to regret it. "I wasn't out of bounds." If she admitted it and LaRusso said something, they might still do a review, and....
Sam nodded. She didn't look angry, or sad, or disappointed. She looked resigned. "Yeah, you weren't."
Tory swallowed, and she wished she could stop thinking about her mother. She didn't want to think about her mother right now. Her aunt Kandace was right, no one knew how much time she had left. Now, Tory had the trophy. Her mom could feel that, just once, her daughter had done something right. "So what happens next?"
Sam shrugged. "If you think I'm going to tell anyone, I won't."
"I don't need your pity, LaRusso!" Tory snapped.
"Then you don't need to give me any either," Sam shot back.
Tory shook her head. "You know, you're the one who's acting like this is a big deal. It's not like you got what you wanted."
"It's not like you got yours," Sam said, her voice low. "But if it's close enough for you to be satisfied, that's your call."
Tory was surprised. "Is that how you really feel?"
"Sure," Sam said, but she didn't turn away. She stood there looking at her with those big blue eyes, her chin tucked down slightly, like she expected something else to happen. Why couldn't she just get in her car and drive away? The conversation was over.
"Yeah, well...." Tory couldn't help herself. She was already thinking about her mom. Yes, there was the trophy, but her mom had also seen her struggle. She'd been in trouble with the law, and now she was finally back in school, and while some part of her thought that if her mom never found out it wouldn't hurt her, there was another thought: if she didn't do the right thing now, she didn't know if she could take it back later, or if she'd be regretting it for the rest of her life. "You're right. I was in bounds."
Sam blinked. She didn't seem quite as surprised. "What?"
"Yeah, I guess. It's just, I didn't want to admit it. That's all."
"And now?" Sam asked. She was looking at Tory with the kind of look you give a dog on your street that barks at you every day but suddenly starts wagging its tail.
"Now I am." Tory nodded. "I guess."
"So, what do we do now?"
Tory paused, thinking about that. She knew she should say something. "I don't know."
Sam shook her head, her lip lifting. "Then I guess it doesn't make any difference, does it? You'll keep the trophy."
Tory stammered. "Well, I..."
"It doesn't matter," said Sam, pulling her car door open violently. "You'd better enjoy it, because next year, I'm going to beat you. And everyone's going to watch me."
Tory didn't move. She watched Sam get in her car and drive away. She waited until she was gone before she walked to her own car. She drove home slowly, trying to figure out how she felt about what had happened.
She didn't have to wait long. She parked her car and got out, slamming the door shut behind her. She was just walking up to the front porch when she heard her name called. She looked around, and there was Robby. He was standing at the edge of the driveway. She waved, and he came towards her.
"Hey," he said. "Are you okay?"
"Sure." Tory shrugged. "I mean, I'm fine."
Robby smiled. "You look good. You ready for karate? I was thinking I could drive you...."
Tory looked over her shoulder and checked the time on her phone. "I can't. I got called in to do a shift."
"Well, you know, if you're not doing anything tonight... I mean, maybe we could go get something for dinner."
Tory shook her head. "I'm sorry, Robby, the volunteer is only staying till five, which means I have to be back by six."
Robby looked at the door, then back at her. She felt a knot of guilt when she saw that hurt look on his face. "Maybe I could come over for dinner?"
She pressed her lips together. She felt awful and knew he could see it all over her face. "I don't think that's a good idea."
His face fell. "All right," he said, nodding as he started back towards his car. "See you tomorrow?"
"Hey." She stopped him with a hand on his arm and gave him a quick kiss. "You better believe it."
He kissed her back, but only for a second. "Do you want me to let Senseis know why you're not there?"
She winced, but nodded. "Yeah. Thanks."
He nodded, but she could see the way his eyes clouded over as he turned away. Tory wanted to reach out and touch him, but she didn't. She didn't want to promise him something she couldn't give him, so she just let him leave and went inside to get changed for work. LaRusso probably doesn't have to deal with any of this, she thought. She probably never worked a day in her life, and both her parents were healthy and loving and.... She threw herself on her bed and buried her face in her pillow, groaning. But she didn't have time to feel sorry for herself. If she hurried, she could check in on her mom before she had to rush to her job.