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The woman exits the facility, walking over to a bright car and a man leaning against it. “Hey,” he says “- you do everything you needed to?"
She smiles but then responds, biting her lip and looking away, ocean wind tugging at her long brown hair "No, not everything."
"Well where to?”
Mr Miyagi had given Julie his address so that she could come visit him in California.
Julie and Eric McGowan pull up in their car onto the street. As soon as he parks, she's beaming and practically running up to the back fence of the house she can tell is the one she's looking for, because of the address but also because she knows it's bigger back there behind the fence of the yard than can be seen from the street.
She recalls him talking about his garden.
"Hello? Mr Miyagi? It's Julie! I know I'm really late but I came out to see you, to water the plants in California like you said, and" she stops as a different man, he's about Mr Miyagi's height, with large dark eyes and a sort of loose-limbed walk that tightens as he opens the gate and comes through. "...oh. You're not Mr Miyagi," Julie does a sort of stamp with one foot, smacking her lips and leaning on a hip "-who are you?"
Daniel starts blinking like crazy and his eyes are filling with tears as he croaks on the response, having heard the excitement prior to confusion in this woman's voice, seen it on her face. "No, I'm not him- he's - I'm Daniel," his voice drops and then hers does too.
"Daniel? Wait," her eyes get sharp, intense but excited again as she adds "you're -you're Daniel-san! Right?”
Julie watches as Daniel's face switches to confusion before he offers an affirmative response, then starts to ask, "How do you-"
She hardly waits for him to finish when she beams, rocking on her heels for a short moment. "Mr. Miyagi told me about you. How he taught you karate before he taught me." As she leans with her body, her eyes dart past him as Daniel's face shifts again, eyes widening as her face grows brighter. “So, where is he?" she asks, setting her gaze back on him again.
Daniel blinks, his throat getting tight and painful as his chest, around his heart, aches. "Ah," he sucks in air, blinking. "Mr Miyagi, he-" he swallows, the pain fresh every time he thinks about it. "He passed away. Um, years ago, it's been..." His eyesight blurring, Daniel blinks rapidly and tears tremble on his eyelashes. "More than twelve years," he breathes. Clears his throat and jerks his head, hands rubbing against each other as he looks across at this woman, Julie, whose eyes mirror his own, reflecting deep sorrow. "I'm - really-” his voice breaks. “So sorry to tell you this," Daniel says. Breathing heavily, centering himself and bouncing slightly on his feet, even then tears slide from his eyes "But he, uh- his legacy lives on." He adds.
As Julie's smile falters, expression flickering between anguish and confusion, she jerks around sharply to glance back at the car where Eric is standing. He shifts in place, lifting his head when he sees her posture change, starting to jog their way when he can make out her dismayed expression.
"No," she mutters, eyes glistening when she looks back at Daniel, bottom lip trembling. She pinches and rolls her lips together, desperately fighting the deep frown that begins to take over her face. "NO," she insists firmly with a jerk of her arm, brows pinching as she turns around to briefly catch sight of Eric again, who's now a few yards away. To Daniel, she manages to growl out words that barely escape sounding like a blubber, "You can't tell me that..." Jerking her body around, she faces Eric. "We came to see him... He's supposed to be here," she explains in a vulnerable voice. "Eric, he's supposed to be here... I- he..." Her hand quickly raises to cover her mouth, only to deflect to petting down some of her hair, tucking it frantically behind her ear as she shifts her balance, unsettled. Gulping hard, she whimpers as she glances out at the yard full of cars with glassy eyes, "He can't be gone too..."
Eric gets the last bit of the way to her and his eyes widen as he hears what she says. "Oh, man, Jules-" he doesn't say anything else, simply offering his arms, and she looks in his face and even as she seems stiff, falls into his chest and lets him wrap his arms around her. He drops his face against her hair and says softly "Julie, I'm so sorry."
Daniel sees this and feels like he's breaking all over again, like he had almost done so many times: with Silver, with the initial reinstating of Cobra Kai, the tournaments, what his family has gone through - and with that he thinks of Mr Miyagi most of all, hears his own voice saying "You're more important than anything to me" so intensely and earnestly when he wasn't even eighteen.
He had no idea what else his mentor, his dear friend would mean to him this many years later...
And his face crumples as more tears start to leak out of his eyes. He feels himself shaking, and he tries desperately to stop. But he can't stop. It's ridiculous, him acting this way; he's had years to deal with his grief, and this woman Julie - has had mere seconds. He feels helpless to do anything but stand. Stand and say again in a broken tone close to a whisper "I'm sorry. You came all this way…”
Daniel is starting to feel cold, from the shaking and tears, and then he hears footsteps coming across the deck and a brash, loud, wonderful voice says "Hey, LaRusso, I leveled out your friggin turntable in the koi pond, you're -" pausing at the edge of the steps down to where Daniel is standing, eyes sharp and intense as ever, Johnny Lawrence stops talking. For a second. And then he sees Daniel's shoulders shake, hears wetly gasped-out breaths as the guy turns his head, brown eyes huge and teary.
He croaks "Johnny-"
And Johnny starts moving, charging from the deck to come up beside and a little in front of LaRusso. He looks at Daniel with one hand extended towards him before shifting into a ready stance, squaring his shoulders, and whipping around to snap at the two people he doesn't know:
"Alright, what the hell's goin' on? What did you just say to him?!”
Julie, pressing her face into Eric's embrace, hugging herself as he hugs her, sucks in a breath as she lifts her head to look up at him, tears silently trailing down her face. Drawing in another soft breath, she turns her head, eyes resting on Daniel, contemplative. The moment Johnny challenges, lighting the air on fire and, in turn, making her blood boil- blubbery voice be damned, she recoils, eyes alight with pain and irritation and spits, "HEY, guy- you don't talk to us that way!”
Johnny's eyebrows rise but he says "oh, yeah?" Jerking his chin forward and up he cuts his gaze and says "why the fuck not, you show up and my co-sensei starts losing it-"
Daniel, sniffling, wipes at his cheek with one sleeve and says thickly, attempting to placate “Johnny…,”
But Johnny's not done. "Nah, man, this isn't like you. You're tough as hell. So-"
"So- this is Julie. She knew Mister Miyagi," Daniel's voice cracks. "She came to visit him...she thought he was- still alive." Pressing his lips together and looking down, licking them as the ends of his hachimaki brush at his neck, Daniel closes his eyes. Squeezes them shut, actually, before looking back at Johnny. “and I just had to tell her that..." Shaking his head helplessly with the grief and the awareness that it hasn't lessened in any way, Daniel says brokenly "I had to-"
"Oh." Johnny softens. Nods and shifts his feet a little, understanding what actually just happened here. He drops his head briefly before reaching out and putting his hand on Daniel's closer shoulder, squeezing. "Sorry, man. And- sorry to you too," sharp eyes shift to look in Julie's again. "Miyagi was a helluva person. Made mistakes, like we all do, but he was a badass."
"And a good man," Daniel adds. “The best around.”
Julie turns her face more towards Eric again, who's watching her with concern and eyeballing Johnny sternly. The space, Miyagi's home, a welcoming beacon moments ago now feels hollow, empty. The cars, of which Eric had remarked on each make and model upon their arrival, now seem abandoned as they sit in the driveway, clearly not seeing the roads very often even as their glossy coats shine in the subdued afternoon sun. With Daniel standing in front of it, notably alone in spite of his- What did he say? Co-sensei standing beside him, the place appears to tower over him, making him look smaller than he had been when she'd met him as a stranger several minutes ago. And, although amicable words had been exchanged to clear up confusion, Julie feels anything but welcome. So, moving her shoulders uncomfortably, tucking her hands now more across her front than around her body, she murmurs into Eric's chest as she makes a move to leave: "We should go.”
Go? "Wait -" Daniel feels worse, now. Sick. He reaches out towards her with hand open. "Please, I'm sorry. You can stay...I have some things from Mr Miyagi, pictures of him, we can-" he looks around wildly, helplessly at Johnny, who looks back at him with eyebrows going up and down as he gestures and nods. "I can make you some tea, you came all this way -"
"Least he could do, the VERY least," Johnny says. "I've got some beer and we can order dinner. You guys like tacos, burgers, or pizza? LaRusso here likes making - goza, and raw fish-"
"It's called sushi and gyoza, Johnny," Daniel sighs. "And you can't give me crap, you tried my gyoza and said it was delicious."
"Uh, I don't remember using that word. Probably said it was passable."
Daniel sighs heavily and turns back to Eric and Julie, asking "Will you? Stay for a little while, I mean," he feels hopeful. Wistful, too- this lady knew his mentor and might have some stories she could tell.
If she will.
Julie looks up at Eric with a furrowed brow. Eric, giving Johnny one last look, offers a gentle smile to her in kind, lifting one of his hands that's bracing her for just a second. "It doesn't sound like a bad idea."
"Eric..." she huffs, shifting her weight.
"If you get uncomfortable, we can leave. Alright? I promise."
"...I am uncomfortable," she grumbles, flicking her eyes to Johnny, shooting daggers for the briefest of moments.
"Just- try...? For me?" Eric urges, rubbing her shoulders gingerly. "And for yourself, too- who knows, it might be good for you."
Julie sighs quietly, her face softening as her tone does. "Okay…”
Johnny meanwhile watches Daniel. The guy is biting his lower lip and rubbing his hand so hard the skin might come off. He seems so- small for a minute, smaller even than he looked when they first met, when it felt like Johnny towered over this New Jersey punk in the darkness on the beach.
Probably because he'd thrown the guy down into the sand.
He steps up to him now, like he'd done back then; but instead of smiling at him, Daniel looks hopeless. Miserable. He's practically chewing on and into his lip, and Johnny's stepping closer, lifting his hand to brush gently against the side of the guy's face.
"Hey, knock it off," he says low. "You're gonna chew a hole through your lip, Daniel."
Daniel looks at him. Those huge brown eyes almost bring Johnny to his knees, and he swears internally that one day, damnit, this guy won't be able to affect him- "I can't believe I did that, just - she was so happy, and I-I had to do that, to make her..."
"What, tell her the truth?" Johnny speaks rough. "You couldn't lie to her, LaRusso. What were you gonna say, ‘oh, Mr Miyagi's picking up some bonsai plants, he'll be back?’ No, man, you had to tell her. Maybe she'll stay and tell you something that'll make you feel less like shit about it- an’ all this legacy stuff and doing things the Miyagi Do way," he's kept one hand on Daniel's shoulder, having lifted the other to his face, and drops that one to squeeze both of the guy's shoulders now.
"I'm not going to stay very long, alright?" Julie announces matter-of-factly, giving Daniel a pointed look. "We can talk and then I'll get out of your hair- what...?" she finishes by exclaiming to Eric in an exasperated whisper, the man having nudged her arm in response to her answer. They exchange a few hushed words before she expels a breath and pushes past him and then past Daniel in a hurried march, muttering "Whatever, you- I'm not..." before it becomes too soft to hear. She feels Daniel's eyes as well as Johnny's burning at her back as she scrambles to take off her shoes and sets them down outside the door in a huff, pulling the door open swiftly before partially shutting it behind her.
When Daniel's eyes find Eric's by default, the man is already approaching with an apology on his face. He shrugs, fingers spread, murmuring, "I'm... sorry about that. She's not -always like this…”
"Well, LaRusso's pretty damn stubborn when he's locked in on something, I get it" Johnny says, even as Daniel flicks his eyes around, drops his face and nods slightly without saying anything. Johnny feels his brows draw together as he adds "Guy can pretty much talk to a wall, though, so he's not usually this quiet," Daniel is moving to head inside, it seems, but freezes whilst looking down at Julie's discarded shoes.
"She- she really must've known him, or how would she -know to do that...?" He looks up, eyes seeming scared, and so damn lost, but he's pushing through the door before Johnny says anything.
So with a breath, before he follows, Johnny turns to Eric and says "hey man, I'm Johnny. Daniel's …well. We do karate shit together."
"I'm Eric," the other replies, sticking out his hand to shake, Johnny doing the same. As they shake hands Eric adds "and I'm Julie's - I'm okay being called her husband," he has a twinkle in his eye that makes Johnny think the guy is pretty smart- or he may just be a smartass.
Johnny nods at him, clearing his throat, and waves for the guy to come on. "Well based on how your wife's been acting so far, and everything I know about LaRusso, we'd better get in there in case they decide to fight it out.”
"Fight what out?" Asks Eric, leaning on one foot to pull the other out of his shoe.
"-the fact they both knew Miyagi," Johnny says, speaking matter-of-factly in his own turn.
Inside, Julie is drifting slowly through the room, eyes scanning the walls as she wordlessly lingers on pictures.
She hardly manages to drift from the dining area to a bedroom when quietly Daniel steps into the house. The two of them make eye contact, Julie jerking her head up, Daniel keeping his head slightly bowed. Pained eyes watch each other warily as they walk steadily, an imaginary boundary keeping them at bay, several feet apart.
The moment the door opens, signaling the entry of the other two men, the spell is broken and Julie makes a point to add distance between them, doing her best to appear as if she's more preoccupied with visiting memories she has very little connection to. The home of a beloved benefactor that feels as much like a stranger's home, each photo or distant sign of being lived in eating at her heart.
Daniel has been breathing and moving and nothing else, but he still feels tears in his eyes and the horrible pain around his heart. "First learn stand, then learn fly" he hears, and wonders how the hell that makes any sense right now- he's lived for more than twelve years without Mr Miyagi and this happens, feels like he's just been gone... Daniel swallows a sound and his eyes are torn away from Julie's as he'd watched her with her hand pressed against herself, leaning a little to look at pictures and things, and instead he catches Johnny's eyes.
Johnny, who lost his mother, who was coming off a bender three days after her death, he said- who never really got out of that, taking booze to talk to her after he did something stupid (those had been his own words to Daniel, to which Daniel had replied softly "me too"). Johnny lost his mother and Daniel lost his own father, but he could deal with that grief, he told Mr Miyagi about it, that the only thing that mattered was Daniel being there for his dad, and loving him.
And he wants to believe the same, about Mr Miyagi, and Julie, too- if she maybe saw his mentor as a father.... But he registers her having said "not him too" about Mr Miyagi, and it makes a lump fill Daniel's throat.
"Julie, have you -" his voice is rough and quiet. But as he looks at her, he can't make himself ask her that, if she's lost someone else. He can't hurt her more than he already has, in spite of not knowing her, she knew Mr Miyagi too. Surely, he had also helped her. "You, uh, said you learned karate," he tries to settle down, to ask a coherent question. "What uh, how'd you get Mr Miyagi to train you? Did you ask him to?”
Julie doesn't look over, retreating a hand before she can touch a picture of Mr. Miyagi. She sighs sharply, dropping her arm and turning to move onto inspecting the small bed tucked in the corner of the room.
As she kneels down, she utters, "Not exactly. My dad taught me." Then, as she leans to take a peek under the bed, she goes on, "My grandfather was best friends with him, or something. Saved his life in the war... so he taught him karate, then my grandfather taught my dad, and well...."
Curling the fingers of a hand against the floor, she straightens up abruptly, her face sour as she glares at nothing in particular. All at once, Colonel Dugan and his minions come to mind. Most annoyingly, Ned's smartass face pops into her view, lit up by the glow of a car on fire, manic, creepy- causing her lip to curl with disgust. "I'd rather not talk about it."
Daniel blinks, looks down, nods. "I think I understand," he says quietly. "I - he- I asked to learn karate from Mr Miyagi." Pretty much begged him, actually. "Remember this, Daniel-san: man who want revenge first dig two graves," he hears his mentor's voice.
And then his own:
"...at least I'd have company then, though, huh?"
It's then that Johnny says, shuffling his weight from one foot to the other "It's alright, LaRusso, tell her how me and the guys were hasslin' you."
That gets Daniel to snap his head up and glare back at Johnny briefly. "’Hassling'? Oh yeah, that's totally the word for it," he scoffs, rolling his eyes.
Johnny is proud of himself for getting Daniel to have that fire back, even if it's just for a second. He lifts his hands.
"Alright, yeah. You were bein' a twerp, so we fought."
"An' I fought back."
"Yeah, okay- by running your mouth and pouring water on me,"
"Hey, I might've done you a favor- what would 've happened if a teacher caught you rollin' up a joint in th' bathroom at the school dance, man, huh?"
"Well who says I was gonna get caught?" Johnny demands, their banter making him quirk his mouth a little. It's still kinda amazing they can talk crap about this now, without legitimately getting pissed off at each other.
Man, times have most definitely changed.
Eric shoots a glance Johnny's way as he ventures further into the room, standing beside Julie as he reaches down to gingerly brush her back. He looks to Daniel then, frowning. "We - had it rough in school, too. There was this military nut passing as a teacher, training kids at school... blackmailed me, brainwashed a buncha guys... had this one asshole thinking he could do whatever he wanted, creeping on Julie...." He trails off, tone strained, and gives her a passing look. Julie scowls, turning her head away, but she says nothing. Eric continues, eyes falling on Johnny this time. "If Mr. Miyagi hadn't taught Julie what she knows, I... I probably wouldn't be here, talking to you.”
Johnny loses every ounce of teasing he just had with Daniel, and Daniel looks from Julie to Eric and back with big eyes seeming even bigger.
"Oh-" he says softly. His eyes flick to Johnny when he hears the phrase 'military nut'.
Johnny clenches and unclenches his fists and then says "Yeah, well. I definitely wouldn't be here if Miyagi and LaRusso didn't end up parkin' near- my sensei's car at the All Valley tournament in '84." He says this roughly.
Eric's brows knit together. "I'm sorry," he says as Julie looks up, eyes wide and expression just as saddened.
"...Guess Mr. Miyagi has a knack for - being there when we didn't know we needed him," she pipes up after a moment.
'Had... had a knack,' she chides herself internally.
Johnny nods in response and smiles at Julie's initial comment, yet her face falls then as she sniffs, balling up her fists. "Eric... he never got to know what I did... how I kept in touch with the monks," she brushes a hand across her cheek as a tear drops from her lashes, "and went back to school... I was so busy... Did he even get my letters?" When she looks up at him, she looks distraught, as well as frustrated, lips forming a tight line. "I was too busy going to school," she wheezes hoarsely, forcibly, "I was too busy getting my act together... I was too bUSy being a mess to even go see him in pERson! After all he did- gOD!" She jerks her hands up, practically slamming her palms into her forehead, the knuckles of her fingers knocking against her skull. "I'm such an idiot..."
"Jules, hey," Eric starts, kneeling down beside her, hand extended, "of course he got what you sent him." His visage softens with empathy. "What would make you think he wouldn't...?"
"Because I always mess everything up, Eric...!" she declares, sucking in a wet gasp as she snaps her head up. "And- how do you know he DID?? Can you ask him- nO!" And, quickly covering her eyes again, she weeps quietly.
"Julie…”
Daniel's eyes become glassy again and he works his lips, but no sound comes out, not at first. He stretches out a hand, waves it low, and gasps wetly "Johnny -"
"I got it, LaRusso," suddenly Johnny's fingers are laced with his. He gives Daniel's hand a squeeze, and looks at him. "Letters?”
"Yeah," Daniel's voice breaks. "I know - I'm pretty sure he had some- the- in the box-" he's losing it, gasping from Julie's pain, which layers up on and seems to multiply his own pain, making him feel heavy enough to drop to his knees.
"Whoa, man, hey," Johnny's arms are around Daniel then, and he eases him to the floor. "I'll go get it, alright? Jesus, just -" Johnny looks at Julie and Eric, Julie's movement at her own face, as well as the words she says about messing everything up, are so familiar to him, and then he brushes his lips to Daniel's forehead. "Just hang on a second" and with that he's up and running through the place to the room where Daniel always seems to do that kata crap, eyes flying over things until he finds the bonsai bush on top of the wooden box with the original patch for Miyagi Do, the guy's dog tags, the picture of his lady- his wife, Daniel had said; he got pretty plastered one night and sobbed over the time Miyagi got drunk on their wedding anniversary. Or was it her birthday? Fuck, Johnny doesn't remember. But he does remember there were letters in there, sure the old telegram thing but also Daniel said he saw a few newer ones when he found the box again.
Wrapping arms around the thing and lugging it back into the other room, Johnny swears internally.
He probably should've already ordered dinner, there needs to be food; and drinks are also necessary for this kind of shit.
Strong ones.
When Johnny shuffles back into the room, Julie is the first to look up, followed by Eric, whose hand is brushing her back. As her cries soften, this seems to get Daniel's attention as well, glassy eyes find Johnny, awe on his face. That box...
"Johnny..." Daniel whispers automatically.
"Is that his...?" Julie manages to squeak out, gritting her teeth behind pinched lips, one of her hands moving to brace against her husband's arm.
"Yep," Johnny grunts as he maneuvers himself between Daniel and the other two, kneeling easily to put the box down. "LaRusso found this -you saw it when we were in high school first time, right?" Daniel nods wordlessly at that, swiping at his cheeks and shifting himself forward.
"Yes, I - saw it when he had it out...he was reliving memories," a spasm crosses Daniel's face. "He always kept it somewhere, but I didn't realize until kinda recently that it was still here." He gestures with his hand as Johnny moves back and drops on his ass beside him, one knee bent and arm resting on top of it as he leans himself into Daniel for support.
Daniel, however, stays focused on Julie. "Please - look inside, if you want," he offers in earnest.
Reliving memories. Julie mulls over this as she silently rises to her feet, striding over to Johnny where he sets the box down, sitting awkwardly across from Daniel. Her fingers twitch briefly in an attempt to reach for the box, pausing only to double check that it is really okay before she grasps the top as if it were an animal she's trying to pin in place. Eric sidles up behind her, keeping a small amount of distance for her and Daniel's sake, yet leaning over her shoulder to be there if she needs him. When she eases her grip, she tentatively moves to open it, the sound of crinkling paper emanating softly within the compartment. It's filled to the brim with letters, photos, small trinkets, and the like. She parses through them carefully, fingertips grazing over the paper with a delicate touch, words both English and Japanese alike appearing alien to her eyes. But perhaps that's due to the cloudiness of the tears that have started to gather once more, warping the image of a younger Miyagi as she holds it now between a few fingers.
"Was he..." She sniffs, looking up to Daniel for only a moment, studying the picture further for answers. "...was he - happy...?”
Daniel pauses. He recalls Kumiko's voice, reading his friend's final letter to her aunt Yukie "... Until I met Daniel-san. His kind heart, strong chi, and compassion for those around him" how that gave, was able to provide Mr Miyagi with the feeling of family. "He fell in love with his sweetheart twice, and - felt like a grandfather to my daughter Sam," his words are choked and small. "I hope so, he was so- giving, and caring to me, to all of us" Daniel looks around and Johnny nods.
"He saved my life, and we had some good talks when he was sick," the other offers. "Never got the teachings myself, but it was all defensive shit LaRusso got when he needed it."
"Because I needed it for balance, man," Daniel replies softly. Looking back at Julie, he says emotionally "I think so. I- really hope he was happy.”
This brings just a hint of a smile to Julie's face as she nods in response. "He helped me when I'd lost my parents. It was just me and my grandmother... I stopped caring about - well, everything." She shrugs her shoulders as she shifts in place, as if trying to brush off the memory. "I was having problems and I blamed everyone else... but it was me-I knew my parents were gone...but I blamed my grandmother for grieving, acted like it was her fault I was a mess because she kept bringing them up. She had to move on because I already had..." she mumbles, bringing up a hand to tuck some hair behind her ear. Her face turns sour for just a fraction of a second. "...but I didn't. I acted tough, because I'd thought I was dealing with all of it by myself, that I was sad on my own... so I could deal with everything else life threw at me on my own.... Mr. Miyagi helped me remember I wasn't - on my own..." Her eyes trace the box, then find Daniel's gaze. "...and that I wouldn't, couldn't respect others if I didn't respect myself first." The corner of her mouth quirks up a bit more as Eric places a hand on her shoulder, and she inclines her head a bit in his direction. "I might've had help with that from someone else too, I don't know," she adds, a bit of teasing in her tone.
Daniel recalls the way he'd been when he first got to the Valley. How he blamed his mom for bringing them.
"Whaddya wanna heaR, Ma? I just gotta take karate, that's all!" That I hate it here, gettin' my ass kicked every day? He hadn't been like that with his dad, he thinks maybe he'd been too young to really grieve.... It feels like now, after Mr Miyagi, it's almost as if he's grieved for them both at once.
At times, at least.
Hearing the way Julie talks, Daniel sees their similarities, understands potentially why Mr Miyagi had been able to help her. And he smiles a little at the teasing she does with Eric. Glances over at Johnny afterwards. Johnny nods at him in response, those intense blue eyes twinkling.
"I'm glad he helped you," she says after a minute, sliding the box towards Daniel before placing the photo on top. "In a way, that probably helped me. Though," she snorts, drawing up a hand to brush through a bunch of her hair, holding the end as she remarks, contemplative even as she smiles distantly, "he probably got along easier with you. You're not a girl."
Boys easier, he would say, although she's almost one hundred percent sure he didn't mean anything bad by it. Her sour temper didn't help matters, that's for sure... Just wasn't the best thing to hear at the time.
"It's great that he helped you too," Daniel feels himself smiling widely, even with the remnants of tears in his eyes. He chuckles afterwards, a little rueful. "But... I don't know how much it would've helped you, the fact he had to teach me first- I don't think it was all that easy, he always said I had a hard head."
Johnny snorts. "Well he's not wrong," to which Daniel whips around and stares at him.
"Oh really, Lawrence?”
"Really, Daniel," Johnny says right back with a smirk.
Eric clears his throat then, making a point to hold Johnny's eyes for a second before he offers, "You said there'd be food, right? I could pay, if it's not too much trouble.”
Johnny after keeping eyes on Daniel's, shifts them to Eric and nods back. "Yeah, there's a burger place down the road, we can order pizza or somethin'. Unless you got any actual food here, LaRusso?"
Daniel rolls his eyes. "Well you're the one who said something about sushi, Johnny- question is if I make some are you gonna eat any of it?"
Johnny grins. "You know my answer, man. Not on your life." Looking back at Julie and Eric "I'm not gonna say no to you payin' if ya want," he says bluntly. "LaRusso is always paying for things."
Daniel hisses "Johnny-" God. Why does he have to say it like that?!
"But what d'you guys want?" Johnny continues a little more loudly. "Your first time in Cali, gotta get some'a the good stuff."
"Any chance sashimi's on the menu...? I never had the chance to try it - with him," Julie chimes in, smiling sadly as she leans back, pressing her head to Eric's shoulder. "Though I did eat a lot more veggies when he was around... Reminds me of my dad.”
Daniel's head shoots up and he practically beams. "Yeah! I can make sashimi, it won't be as good as his, but - he would cook with me. Well, teach me how. I learned all the hearty Italian stuff, pasta from my dad- an' a little from my mom, and then seafood and rice and tea- I learned about those from Mr Miyagi." Johnny sighs heavily and Daniel adds "Johnny, you'll like sashimi," sternly. "Or at least, you c'n try it.”
"What if I was allergic to seafood, LaRusso?"
"Well you're not. And what's it you said, that allergies are bullshit? So you should be able to just not bE allergic, isn't that your spiel? Huh?"
Johnny, pushing his palms into the floor, growls "I should never 've joined up with you."
"No, what you shouldn't have done is say something that ridiculous,” Daniel retorts as he heads to check what sorts of fish he has. "I might have to buy some new- sashimi tastes the best when it's from fish that're the most freshly caught." Daniel pulls out a skillet as well as a bag of rice and speaks a touch more loudly "Hey, Johnny -"
"What, am I goin' to pick up your fish, LaRusso? You expecting me to grab one with my bare hands down on the beach?"
Daniel sighs, rolling his eyes so hard that the movement itself seems loud. "Of course not. I'm askin' if you'll go to the store."
"Yeah, yeah." Johnny shoves the floor and flips his legs and torso up to a standing position. "Fine, but I'm getting Coors banquet too."
"Suit yourself," Daniel says, dropping his eyes to watch the pan as he starts to sizzle some rice, keeping his features as neutral as he can, but he can't help smiling.
And thinking this, meeting Julie and Eric, and eating after talking together ... This is a good thing.
Yet another good thing Mr Miyagi has done.