Sky lay on her bed, staring at the roof and thought about Eli Moskowitz. It was now almost two weeks since that night in his room, that night when she had climbed to sit on his lap and kissed him, and she hadn't seen him since.

First she'd been suspended for a week, and after that she'd gotten the cold and had been forced to spend five days in bed with a running nose and fever, and thus had ended up missing almost two full weeks of school.

Not that she minded missing lessons, she had always learnt better when studying by herself. But she had missed Eli, and since that kiss—

I shouldn't have done that.

He probably thinks I'm crazy. A crazy slut...

But she couldn't get the memory out of her head. The memory of his hands on her waist, the roughness of his scarred lip on her mouth, the heaving of his chest and the dry, throaty groan that had left his lips when she had lowered her weight on him and had felt his super hard erection through the fabric of the jeans.

That thought still made Sky's heart go wild in her chest, skipping and missing beats like a drunken step dancer.

He wanted me, that's for sure.

But then why isn't he texting me and telling me that?

Sky rolled her eyes to herself.

Why aren't you telling that to him, you stupid ass? He probably thinks you want nothing to do with him after the way you ran out of his room...

Her cheeks heated with the embarrassing memory of Eli's Mom stepping into the room while she had her tongue down Eli's throat.

Christ. I can never again stand in front of that woman in my life. Never!

So no more surprise visits to Eli's house, no matter how much Sky missed him, and hoped that he'd at least be texting her—

Though, to be honest, Eli had been texting her. He had sent her pictures of all the chemistry notes and assignments, so that she could keep up. He had told her about stuff that was going on in school, and had even sent a couple of silly selfies with Demetri that were taken in his room and showed them stuffing too much popcorn in their mouths.

Eli had also informed Sky that Sam had broken up with Kyler and that now she was being bullied and called names because of some stupid rumor about her sucking Kyler's dick in the movies, which was absurd really, for anyone who knew Sam for even a bit, would've known that wasn't true. Sky was grateful for Eli telling her all this, and she had called Sam right away, just to be there for her, just as Sam had been there for her when the shit had hit the fan the week before. Because that's what friends do.

So actually, the only thing Eli hadn't been texting her about, was the kiss.

And that was probably the only thing they should have talked about.

But as days had passed, it had become harder and harder to mention it. And now it was too late, it would have been super awkward. The last text from Eli said 'pages 36-39 and exercises 1,2,4 and 6'.

How the Hell was Sky supposed to answer to that by telling him that she thought about their kiss fucking nonstop? That she couldn't even sleep because her body felt like it was about to spontaneously combust when she was thinking about him, so that all night long she just tossed and turned restless and sweaty under the sheets.

No way, she couldn't do it. It was too fucking embarrassing. Just like everything in her stupid life.

But she was going back to school tomorrow. Tomorrow. She would see him there, no doubt, and that thought shook her to the core of her being.

She hadn't been this nervous about meeting a guy since—

Since Matt.

That thought still felt like a punch through her sternum, and she pushed it away with all her willpower.

There was a special place in Hell for that boy, and there was a special place in the back of her mind for all thoughts about him. A dark, isolated corner of her mind that she kept locked and hidden. A real Pandora's box.

The sound of her mobile phone drew Sky back in the moment, and she picked it up. There was a message from Sam in her Whatsapp—

: Holy shit, Sky

Look at this

: ?

And then a picture popped into her screen, a picture of a boy with a blue mohawk and a cocky grin.

Sky's stomach dropped to her knees.

That boy - it was Eli.

Gone was the coppery hair she had buried her fingers into when they had kissed, gone was the shy look on his face, the ugly sweater, the kind smile—

But the eyes, they were the same. The vast, blue eyes that she wanted to fall into.

: OMG

is that for real?

: Yeah

your friend got a haircut

and Miguel tells me he's joined Cobra Kai too

and he wants people to call him Hawk now

Sky processed this information for a moment, looking at the picture of the boy with the blue mohawk.

Hawk? For real?

Suddenly Sky felt all weird, hollow in her stomach, aching for something she couldn't name. She did not know this boy in the picture, She didn't trust that cocky smile.

Not really knowing what to think, she opened her conversations with Eli on Whatsapp, and sent a message.

: got a haircut?

: yeah

who told you?

: Sam sent me a picture

A couple of heartbeats later another photo popped into her phone, a selfie this time. Eli was looking straight at her through the screen, his chin tilted up, his lips drawn into a crooked smile. The mohawk looked sharp as a knife, cutting the blue sky behind him.

Sky's heartbeat quickened - She couldn't deny he looked hot. But he also looked alien, not at all the boy she had gotten to know.

: you like it?

: kinda

but I liked your old hair too

She paused and took a breath, before continuing.

and that's not the only thing I like about you

But then she deleted the text before sending it out. It felt like such an intimate thing to say, and suddenly she felt nervous, like she was talking to a stranger instead of Eli, who had been her friend.

: are you coming to school soon?

: tomorrow

: nice

can't wait

I've missed you

Sky's heart thumped in her chest.

He's missed me—!

So, what does that mean? That he's been thinking about the kiss too?

With somewhat shaky fingers she typed the reply, her heartbeat ticking fast and uneven in her throat, like the wings of a hummingbird.

: i've missed you too

maybe we can talk tomorrow?

at school or after that

: sure

but after school I'll be at the dojo

Cobra Kai

but you can come too

if u wanna join

So it was true that Eli had joined a karate dojo, then. Maybe it was the reason behind his sudden confidence and the new haircut.

Sky was happy for him, sort of. She knew how it felt to belong, to be part of something bigger than herself. She remembered the feeling of power, the knowledge that her body was a lethal weapon and that she could rely on it, the confidence that followed.

But to go to Cobra Kai with Eli?

She wasn't sure how she felt about that.

Would sensei Lawrence even accept her? How would her shoulder take the strain? And most importantly - would training trigger too many memories? Would she drown and suffocate in them in the middle of the dojo?

She read Eli's - Hawk's - text again, and let out a long sigh.

He wasn't technically asking her out, was he? He was only saying that she could go with him if she wanted to.

Why does everything have to be so fucking complicated?

If only he'd asked her out for an ice cream instead. To that, she would've said YES in a heartbeat.

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🙏🏻❤️

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