"Are you sure?"  
"I'm not even sure if i'm sure." Odessa admitted.
"Check the replay!" Demetri ordered as Johnny and Daniel stood back up.
Everyone crowded around Chris and he replayed the video.  The replay showed both them men hit each other at the same time. Odessa squinted her eyes, still not seeing who won. "Go to another angle," Johnny pointed his finger.
"There is no other angle." Chris remarked, looking at him oddly. 
"Don't you guys have another phone?"
Odessa saw someone walk into the backyard and she lifted her head, seeing that it was Eli. His hood was pulled over his head and his hands were stuffed in the pockets of his hoodie. "Eli?" She spoke and got everybody's attention. 
The lifted his head slightly and they saw his red, tear stained face. 
"Shit, Eli, what happened?" Demetri followed up. 
Eli didn't answer.  Instead,  he pulled his hood down and exposed himself. The color drained from Odessa's face. His hair was shaven down until the Mohawk was completely gone, the only thing left being tiffs of purple hair. She stepped forward was a dropped jaw. 
Johnny pushed past everyone and walked up to him.  "Who did this?" He questioned in anger.
"Cobra Kai." 
Odessa just stood there staring at him, not being able to move her feet. He pulled his hood back over his head,  feeling embarrassed.
"Kreese and Silver did this. They need to pay." Johnny expressed.
"Jesus, Johnny,  please." Daniel begged. "Kreese tried to kill you last time. You wanna fight both of them?"
"Damn right I do. Look what they did!"
"Dousing the fire with gasoline. That's your answer ?"
"Will you two just stop!? For god sakes, just stop." Thalia begged, finally growing sick and tired of beefing them argue. 
Finally being able to move her feet, Odessa walked closer and wrapped her arms around him. Eli sank into her arms as if she were a warm blanket. He couldn't bring himself to look at her. He was far too embarrassed. But his arms wrapped around her frame tightly and he hit his face into her shoulder. More tears  fell from his eyes.
"I'm so sorry, Eli. I'm so sorry." She quietly said and got choked up. Her eyes glossed over when she felt wet tears on her neck snd his shoulders began to shake. 





















Odessa sat on her bed, messing with her hands because she was afraid to do anything else, while Eli was in her bathroom taking a shower. The drive home was quiet. Thalia didn't question whether it was in her daughter's best interest for him to go to their house, she just knew that Eli needed someone and he needed her. She was in that position before, too. 
She was shaking so bad from all the emotions that she was feeling that she had to curl into a ball. She wrapped her arms around her torso because her stomach was so unsettled. She couldn't believe that Robby would do something like this. She knew he was vengeful, that he was angry at her and that he hated Eli, but she never believed that he would take it this far.
She grabbed her phone and quickly texted in the group chat. 


the russo's 🧇
teresa (odessa)
alex (hailey)
justin (grayson)
max (oliver)
teresa 
wait, why am I teresa?


alex
because you're the mom
Of the group.  
you're also a badass bitch.


teresa
thanks baby <3


justin
why am I justin 
and not max?


max
according to our grades
you're about 75% smarter than me.
i'm funnier and also spelt my 
name wrong one time.


justin 
touché
and yeah how 
do you misspell 
oliver?


alex
anyways! 
dess, 
how's eli?


teresa
not good :(
he's taking a shower right now
he hasn't said a word to me 
since we got to my house.
he 's just been crying.
I feel really bad.


justin
poor guy
I can't imagine
but if someon tried shaving 
my head,  my foot would be
up their ass.


max
I feel bad for the dude.
tell him we're thinking about him.


alex
^


justin
^^


teresa
thanks guys.  
I love you <3






The sound of something falling in her bathroom made Odessa head lift. She dropped her phone on her bed and stood up.  "Eli? Is everything okay?" She asked through the door. The faint sound of sobs echoed in her ears. She leaned her head against the door. "Eli?  Can I come in?" 
All she heard was the sound of the knob unlocking.  She carefully twisted it and opened the door. Eli stood hunched over her bathroom sink, his sweatpants on but his shirt was off. His hands gripped the edge of the counter and he cried. Odessa stepped forward behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. She laid her head on his back and kissed the middle of it.
His shoulder racked in sobs.  "I'm so sorry." He cried softly. He repeated it over and over.
Odessa shook her head. "Don't worry about that." She lifted her head and eyed the back of his shaven head. "Do you want me to shave the rest?"
He only nodded. She grabbed her vanity chair from the room and had him set down while she grabbed one of her dads old razors from the drawer. She stood behind her and put a warm hand on his shoulder. "Are you ready?"  She asked him. 
Again, he only nodded.
One by one, Odessa saved off the purple tuffs of hair and they fell to the floor. She glanced at him occasionally in the mirror and his eyes settled on the container that held all of her toothbrushes. He looked completely numb. Heartbroken. Embarrassed. She saw the old Eli, the boy who was always so vulnerable because he was was made fun of for looking different than everyone else. When she was done, Odessa turned the razor off and put it on the counter. She wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulder again.
Eli's hand touched one of her arms and he left it there. His heart was broken, his confidence gone, but she was still there. He had gotten his karma. But she made him feel protected. She was all that he needed.