Heartbreak Weather, Eli Mosko...

XLI.                                               Heartbreak Weather

      When Odessa walked into training the next day, she didn't expect to see Eli back. It shocked her. She was sure that after yesterday, he wouldn't be back, and she spent all night worrying about it. When Eli saw her walk into the backyard, he smiled at her. He noticed the way the bright sun reflected off her blonde hair, making it appear brighter, and it made her blue eyes glow more than they already did. She was beautiful.

"You're back." She uttered when she stood in front of him.

Eli nodded. "I am. Shocking, huh?"

She hummed.

"I thought about what you and Johnny said yesterday. He's right. Talk is cheap. And you're right. Everyone here as a right to be angry with me. Instead of saying sorry, I need to actually do something and make amends with everyone."

Odessa smiled and noticed the tools everywhere. "I guess that's where the tools come in?"

He grinned. "I decided to start with Mr. Larusso. I spent all night last night designing a sparring deck. It's gonna help us train a lot better."

He got his Ipad and pulled up the design he was talking about. Odessa felt her heart flutter. He was really trying. He wasn't giving up. Eli looked at her again and saw the look on her face. He suddenly felt shy.

"Where do I start?" She asked and went to join the others.

Eli put his hands in a praying position and mouthing thank you the sky multiple times. 

Odessa and Hailey were nervous about Grayson and Oliver having sledgehammers. They were idiots individually but when it came to each other as a pair, things got dangerous. "Demetri, that's not a good idea." Odessa said to her friend.

"I already tried to tell him." Demetri responded and held his hands up. "He does what he wants."

Oliver winked at his boyfriend.

Eli came over and he was holding a sledgehammer as well. "You guys ready?" He asked the guys.

"Hell yeah, I am." Grayson expressed and held the tool in his hand with excitement.

Hailey cringed. "I have to look away." She said and turned her back.

They stood in front of Daniel's wooden fence. "Ready?" He shouted. "Comin' down!"

They swung the sledgehammers and the fence came falling down. "Hey! What are you doin'?" Daniel shouted in anger when he came storming into the backyard.

Grayson's eyes went wide and he lowered the sledgehammer. "Uhhh, it was Hawk's idea!"

Eli looked at him a dropped jaw.

Oliver dropped his on the ground. "I had nothing to do with it." He quickly said and walked away to stand with Demetri.

He stood in front of an angry Mr. Larusso and he looked between him and Johnny. "You were both right. Talk is cheap. So, i'm building a bridge." Eli related what he said to Odessa.

"Uh, more specifically an Okinawan sparring deck," Demetri corrected and showed them the iPad he was holding of Eli's graphic design. "Eli's a design whiz. I looked it over and the physics checks out."

Eli felt Odessa's hand brush against his back as she walked behind him. "Yep, it was all Eli's idea." She praised and smiled at him.

He smiled back.

"Mr. Miyagi just used this area for extra storage," Sam said when she and Miguel joined in on the conversation. "But a new deck would mean a lot more room for training."

"We're all gonna help build it," Miguel agreed. "Assuming our Sensei's approve?"

Johnny watched the kids work in the area to clean it up. Grayson and Oliver digging holes in the middle of the dirt, occasionally throwing it at each other, while Demetri was racking leaves. Johnny looked at his colleague. Daniel looked back. They agreed that it was a good idea.

Odessa smiled widely and squeezed Eli's shoulders, shaking him slightly.

The sparring deck they built was beautiful. They put in a lot of hard work and it seemingly brought them together even more. And for what ever reason, it seemed to bring Johnny and Daniel together also. It was a step in the right direction. They spent the next day learning both Miyagi-Do training and Eagle Fang training. Odessa would admit that she liked Miyagi-Do training. She found it beautiful.  It wasn't about aggression. She knew both techniques would give them a great shot at winning the All Valley.

They were getting better. Not just with their moves but their friendships were mending. Everyone was starting to trust Eli again. Some more slow than others but it was step in the right direction. Odessa knew her friends needed more validation in order to fully forgive them and Eli understood that. He wasn't giving up.

The next morning, Thalia dropped Odessa and Miguel off at the Larusso's. She was nervous seeing as Daniel was teaching them today instead of Johnny. She knew Mr. Larusso's teaching techniques were much more refined and calming than Johnny's. She just felt bad for the Miyagi-Dos.

Eli smiled when he saw the pair come into the backyard. "El Serpiente! Mariposa!" He announced and everyone turned around to see them.

Odessa laughed. "Did you just name me after a Barbie movie?"

"Don't diss the best Barbie movie!" Said Hailey from where she was sitting on the ground with Grayson.

"Uh, try Princess and the Pauper." Odessa corrected and sat with them.

Grayson scoffed. "Pff, you're both wrong. It's obviously Twelve Dancing Princesses."

Mitch narrowed his eyes. "You guys still watch Barbie movies?" He questioned.

The three friends sent him the same dirty look. "Yes."

His eyes widened. "Wow, that's scary."

"We have Barbie movie marathons like every other week." Odessa told him.

"Can I come to the next one?" Bert asked.

She smiled and high fived him. "Course you can."

Miguel started going into detail about what happened even he had dinner with the Larusso's. "Dude, you spilled a glass of wine. So what?" Said Eli.

"I don't know man, you should've heard the way Mr. Larusso was talking about Sam's future," Miguel said sadly. "I can't even afford a car, let alone college. What if they start to think i'm not good enough for her?"

"Don't say that, Mig. You're one of the best. You have all a's. You know how many scholarships you can get with they?" She encouraged.

"Exactly, dude. You're El Serpiente. Just show Mr. Larusso what you're made of." Eli agreed with a smirk. "I know you're gonna crush whatever he throws at us today."

"Yeah, compared to Sensei's Lawrence's training, todays gonna be a vacation." Mitch added with a casual smirk.

"As long as I don't have to go anywhere near that
thing—" Odessa pointed behind her at the pond. "I don't care what we do."

Grayson rolled his eyes. "It's not even that bad. You just have awful balance."

"I got a shoe thrown at me!"

"Who's going on vacation?" Daniel voiced when he entered the backyard.

Miguel's eyes widened. "Uh, no one! What have you got for us today?"

He motioned for them to follow him. "Come here."

Odessa smiled at Eli when he held out his hand. She took it and he helped her off the ground. Everyone followed Daniel across the yard. "Now, I know you've all been taught to strike first. But what do you do when your opponent is faster than you?" He asked them.

Her eyes widened when she saw him standing in front of the pond. "Oh no, I spoke too soon." She panicked.

"Are those real koi?" Asked Mitch.

"They sure are. Today's lesson is simple—" Daniel motioned to the pond. "—Catch a fish. But since I know you Eagle Fangs like a bit of competition, we're gonna make it interesting. So, the first to succeed will have the honor of leading class all week."

The students stood still.

He sighed. "And to also get to pick what flavor gatorade I buy next week."

"Aw, hell yeah! Hope you all like glacial freeze." Mitch cheered.

Odessa grinned. "Where's the rods?" She asked the Sensei.

"Back in my garage." Daniel replied. He held up his hands. "Your bare hands are all you'll use and all you'll need."

Hailey groaned. "Ah man, I just got my nails done." She complained.

"On your mark, get set, go!"

The Eagle Fang students rushed over to the pond, Odessa and Hailey trailing back slightly — not really caring — and they leaned over the rocks. Odessa reached her hand into the water and cringed when she felt the fist hitting her palm. It was harder than it looked.

Suddenly, Miguel fell into the water and Grayson bursted out laughing. "Oh, thank god it wasn't me again." Odessa sighed with relief.

Everyone bursted out laughing like Grayson. Miguel slowly turned around, completely drenched, and looked nervously at Daniel. "Well, looks like you're a little wet behind the ears." The man joked.

Hailey helped Miguel out of the pond and Daniel led him inside house to dry off. Odessa sat on the rocks. "Wonder how Oliver's doing with Johnny."

Grayson shrugged. "Knowing Johnny, he's probably having them jump off a building right about now."

The Miyagi-Do students trudged up the large flight of stairs behind Johnny. "Holy shit, I can feel my lungs in my throat." Oliver huffed from exhaustion and he leaned his hands on his knees.

"Where are they taking us?" Nathan exasperated with heavy breaths.

Demetri leaned his body against Oliver's and panted hard. "Nowhere good. I heard he drowned a kid in the pool trying to teach him how to kick."

"Oh yeah, and he sent rabid dogs after us in a garabage lot," Oliver added. "I ended up pushing Hammy off a car." They gave him odd looks. "Yeah, this might be bad." He said to himself.

"Let's go, Miyagi's. Move your asses!" Johnny shouted from up top of the stairs.

They continued trudging up the stairs. Oliver sighed in annoyance. "Do you think i'll get sued if I push him off the stairs?"

Demetri gave him a pointed look. "What have we said about pushing people off the stairs?"

"For them to not end up like Miguel?"

"Well, yeah, that—and because it's a crime."

He. "Not if I make it look like an accident."

When they reached the top, Johnny kicked open a door and lead them out to the top of the building. They followed him to the edge of the roof and Oliver looking down at the alley. "Yep, I was right." He proclaimed.

"What are we doing here?" Sam asked and they all backed away.

"When an Eagle's hungry, it doesn't hesitate. It'll dive down at a hundred miles an hour to snatch its prey. doesn't wait around for a fish to jump in its feet—"

Demetri corrected Johnny. Oliver quickly elbowing him to shut up.

"It's not talent," Johnny ignored him. "It's instinct. An Eagle knows it has to make the first move. If you want to beat Cobra Kai in the All Valley, you gotta break yourself of this wait-and-see crap."

"And how exactly are we going to do that?" Asked Sam.

"Please don't tell me it involves jumping off here." Oliver begged.

"You're gonna jump from this roof to that one."

He shut his eyes tightly. "Fuck."

Sam looked at him like he was insane. "What? Are you crazy?"

"That building is, like, five Nate's away and we're at least fourteen Nate's high!" Demetri complained.

"In other words, we're not tall enough." Oliver elaborated.

Nathan felt offended. "Please don't use me as a system of measurement. And hey!"

"QUIET!" Johnny shouted, making them shut up quickly. "If you want to be an eagle, first you gotta learn how to fly."

"What if we fall?" One of the boys asked.

That's what the mattresses are for."

"And if we miss the mattresses?" Demetri asked frantically.

"Try not to." Johnny answered.

Oliver slapped his hand against his forehead and dragged it own his face. He groaned out loud.

After another hour of trying to catch a fish, the Eagle Fang students got their stuff and walked out front to leave. "I was so close to catching one. I definitely touched a scale." Said Mitch.

"I know this Chinese restaurant with a big ass fish tank. We can go there and practice." Eli suggested. "You guys coming?"

Odessa shrugged. "Why not. My mom won't be home for a while."

"Chinese sounds bomb right now." Grayson agreed and rubbed his stomach.

Miguel shook his head. "Nah, my mom's picking me up."

"All right. Well, stay dry my friend." Eli said with a chuckle. He nudged Odessa's arm.

"Bye, Miguel!" Hailey shouted over her shoulder.

He smiled at them. Odessa looked over her shoulder and saw him standing there, staring at his phone.

Odessa sat quietly in Eli's car. He offered to drive her home after they spent hours practicing catching fish until the workers almost kicked them out. "I'm surprised you didn't kill that one fish." He said with a laugh.

"He kept slipping out of my hand! I didn't mean to almost throw it." She defended herself while laughing.

"You definitely did better than Penis Breath. Did you see him almost fall in?" Eli chuckled.

Odessa threw her head back, still laughing. "Oh, my god. That was amazing."

He looked away from the road and his eyes fell on her. The windows were rolled down and the breeze blew through her blonde hair. He loved hearing her laugh. When it was genuine, it was sweet. He missed feeling this way. Like it was easy to breath. Like he had nothing to worry about because he was with her.

Odessa looked his way and pushed his face to the side. "Keep those wild eyes on the road." She told him.

Eli smirked. "You're better looking than the road."

She rolled her eyes briefly but a smile crept on her lips. While he looked at the road, she snuck glances at him. The way his hands wrapped around the steering wheel. The way his jaw ticked. How he blinked. Odessa suddenly felt nervous. Her stomach was in knots. Eli looked her way again when he felt her staring. She hadn't taken a long drive with him like this in months.

It could either end in burning flames or paradise.