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Robby was trying desperately to be accepted into the Miyagi-Fang Dojo, especially after the whole incident with his placebo concussion. Robby was extremely embarrassed and part of him assumed that everyone judged him for it. Robby just wanted to be liked and cared for by people, which was something that hadn’t occurred often in his lifetime.
So, when the Miyagi-Fang kids decided that it was a great idea to explore the tunnels at the edge of town, Robby agreed to go with them, despite the fact that he was incredibly claustrophobic from being locked in the Cobra Kai back room.
When the gang, which consisted of Miguel, Sam, Anthony, Hawk, Demetri, Robby, and a few other Miyagi-Fang kids arrived at the entrance to the caves, Miguel pulled Robby aside.
“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Miguel told Robby. “Nobody will think any less of you if you go home.”
“What, you scared, Diaz?” Robby spat. He didn’t mean to get aggressive, but he was anxious, and sometimes, aggressive behavior is the only way that Robby feels he can defend himself. It was what kept him alive in Cobra Kai.
“No,” Miguel said gently. “But I know you are. I know being in enclosed spaces freaks you out. You don’t have to pretend.”
“Well, I’m going to, so fuck you. I need to prove that I can belong here, and if that means crawling through some caves, so be it.”
“You don’t have to prove yourself, Robby,” Miguel tried to explain, but the boy was already gone. Robby went into the tunnel when no one was paying attention.
While Miguel and Robby had been speaking, the others had been deliberating about whether or not going into the caves was actually a good idea. Demetri, Eli, and Anthony noticed that the cave didn’t seem very structurally sound, so the other kids had attempted to start a debate about whether or not to actually go into the cave.
They came to the conclusion that entering the cave was a bad idea.
But Robby didn’t hear this before he entered.
Miguel heard the statement that the caves were not safe enough to explore and ran to retrieve his brother.
Robby wasn’t too far into the cave, but he was far enough that Miguel couldn’t reach out and touch him, to get his attention, to pull him back.
“Robby,” Miguel said to get his brother’s attention. “The cave isn’t safe, we're not going anymore.”
Robby laughed. “So, you’re all pussies then!” Robby shouted back, crawling a little bit farther forward. Then, he stopped. The walls were narrow enough that his shoulders barely touched them. Robby felt the walls tremble and knew that Miguel had been right. Robby tried desperately to scramble backwards and made it a surprising distance before the dirt collapsed onto him.
Miguel felt terror overwhelm him as the dirt fell and covered Robby. He took a couple of steps back. Miguel didn’t know what to do. He collapsed to the ground, feeling panic overwhelm him more than it had for a long time.
He tried to calm himself, but nothing was working. He felt a hand on his shoulder and jolted backwards. When he turned to see who it was, Miguel saw Sam sitting beside him. It was clear that she was nervous for their friend, but she needed to take care of Miguel and that was something she could handle. It only took a minute for Sam to calm Miguel, but what really calmed him was the sight of his brother being pulled out of the dirt by the other Miyagi-Fangs, still able to breath on his own.
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The moment that Robby was crushed by the dirt, he felt panic crushing him as well. He couldn’t breathe, not just because of his fear, but because there was no air to breathe here. He could only hope that someone would find him before he suffocated.
As soon as the caves collapsed, the Miyagi-Fangs rushed into action. The tunnel was only about one foot under the ground here, and they knew approximately where Robby was when the tunnel collapsed, so they knew that there was some hope to find him.
It helped that the first person to move was Demetri. He was the one who was the most likely to know if there was hope to find their friend. If he didn’t think it was possible, he wouldn’t have tried. So, the rest of the Miyagi-Fangs followed suit.
They began digging for Robby and it didn’t take long to find him.
The moment that Robby felt the dirt above him shift, he began trying to move in order to move more dirt. The gang noticed this movement and was able to quickly concentrate their efforts on that location.
They dug Robby out of the dirt and helped him up. They all made their way back to where Miguel was sitting with Sam, having a panic attack. It was that moment that the cave-in experience sunk in for Robby.
He had almost died.
Miguel was upset that he almost died.
Miguel was upset and it was his fault.
Everything was always his fault.
Robby’s own breathing picked up. He was having a panic attack of his own now. Damn it. He couldn’t calm himself down either. He couldn’t remember what to do. He couldn’t goddamn breathe.
“Fuck,” he whispered. This got Demetri’s attention and he turned from Miguel to Robby. Everyone had been on their phones, some calling an ambulance to check on Robby, others calling parents or their senseis because there was no way in hell that they were letting Miguel and Robby walk home in their condition. No one else had heard Robby speak. Only Demetri. And the boy immediately recognized what was happening to his friend. Robby was having a panic attack and needed to be calmed.
Miguel would be okay. He had Sam right now. Robby needed someone to help him. Now, Demetri would be the first to admit that he wasn’t the best at this, calming people during a panic attack. He had only had to do it a couple of times, and even then he had just been a secondary helper. But Robby needed him, and he was going to do the best that he could.
Demetri gently guided Robby to sit on the ground and sat down beside him. He didn’t know what to do from there, so he glanced over at Sam for inspiration.
Sam was grasping Miguel’s hand to keep him grounded.
So, Demetri gently grabbed onto Robby’s hand to get his attention and keep him grounded on something other than his thoughts. Robby looked up at Demetri, confusion starting to replace the panic.
Sam was also saying things to Miguel to calm him down. “Everything’s okay now.”
So, Demetri tried that too. “Everything’s okay now,” Demetri said in the most calming voice he could muster. “You’re out of there. You’re safe. You’re alive.”
Robby was able to calm down just before the paramedics arrived to check him over. He was informed that he had no severe injuries from the experience and was set to go home.
Johnny arrived shortly after to pick up Miguel and Robby. When they arrived back at the apartment complex, both boys said their farewells and went to their own apartments. Miguel went to sit and watch TV in order to finish calming himself. Robby went into his room and ended up stewing over his emotions, rather than doing something productive with them.
Robby had caused his brother to have a panic attack. The guilt was overwhelming.
And, for the first time since he had moved in with his dad, Robby’s urge to cut himself was overwhelming.