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“You a dog or cat person?” Johnny cuts through the tension building up. LaRusso finally looks back at him, a curious look on his face. Johnny sighs loudly, rubbing his face. “Look, it’s not my fault we fucking matched on that dating app. So throw me a bone here.”
Daniel chews on the inside of his cheek, contemplating how to answer Lawrence. It’s been a while since he’s been on a date. Only once did he try dating a man, and it didn’t go well. The moment he tries again, it’s just his luck that he gets his biggest rival. Clicking his tongue to the roof of his mouth, he replies, “Cats. They’re easier to manage, more quiet.”
Johnny smirks. “Of course you like pussies.”
“Alright. That’s it, I’m leaving. This was a mistake.” Daniel replies, exasperated. He stands from his seat, indignation exuding from him. Daniel takes a step forward, and Lawrence immediately stands, wrapping his fingers around Daniel’s wrist. He turns to look at Lawrence, seeing a glint of regret and relief in his eyes. He raises a brow, daring Lawrence to say anything indecent.
Johnny takes a deep breath, rubbing his face. “I’m sorry. There, I fucking said it. Are you happy now? Can you sit down? People are looking.”
Daniel closes his eyes, knowing full well he’ll regret his decision. But he sits down just as their cocktails come.
“Ketel One martini for Mr. LaRusso. And Coors Banquet for the handsome blonde he’s with,” the waiter announces and winks at Lawrence, making Daniel frown in jealousy. Lawrence is with him on a date, not this twink. Daniel takes a long sip, almost downing his whole glass then he hears a soft chuckle.
“Of course, you’re the jealous type. Don’t worry, hot stuff. I’m going home with you tonight.” Lawrence smirks, his eyes fluttering seductively. Daniel almost coughs at how attractive the man is with his combed hair, slightly opened polo shirt and black jacket. It’s unfair how Lawrence still looks this good at his age and gotdamn, the alcohol is already kicking in. Daniel feels much more comfortable than earlier though… guess that’s a win-win?
“Shut up, Lawrence. We barely know each other. The only thing we have in common is our love for karate.”
“You can’t be sure about that. That’s why we're on a date, aren’t we? To get to know if we’re compatible and shit? Not gonna lie, I think we aren’t, but I’m willing to give whatever this is a shot. The fucking app paired us for a reason.”
Leave it to Lawrence to say a genuine answer and still make it sound sarcastic.
Daniel sighs, rubbing his face and observes Lawrence. The latter grins at Daniel and finally opens his first beer for tonight. Lawrence smirks, readying his fingers to flick the cap at him. “Don't. We're in a formal establishment.”
“You're no fun,” Lawrence mumbles, tossing the cap on the table.
Daniel rolls his eyes, clicking his tongue to the roof of his mouth. “Fine, answer the question you asked me earlier then.”
“Hmmm?” Johnny takes a swig and puts down his bottle of beer on the table. He swallows and replies, “Oh, the cats or dogs bit? I like dogs. Always asked Sid and my mom for one, but they never allowed it. Too much responsibility.”
Daniel’s eyes follow the bob of Lawrence’s Adam's apple. He isn’t sure if it’s the lighting or if his alcohol finally reaches his head, but Lawrence is cute when he’s being vulnerable. “It’s not the want for control then?”
Johnny laughs, taking a swig. “That’s probably a factor too. My life wasn’t exactly sunshine and rainbows, LaRusso.”
“Says the man that came from money and lived in Encino. How did you even end up like this, huh?”
Johnny smirks again, setting his Coors bottle down. “Story isn't great for a first date, Danielle . I gotta keep things mysterious so I can share shit for the next dates.”
Daniel’s cheeks turn scarlet at the implication of more romantic nights, but his frown deepens at the cryptic reply. “Try me. I’m not leaving here until I hear it.”
I mean, it can’t be that bad, could it? He’s a villain through and through. What could he possibly have experienced? He’s fucking Johnny Lawrence from Encino, Cobra Kai’s golden boy… literally. I don’t mind the golden hair either; he looks as beautiful as his high school self. I’m kinda jealous.
Bitter laughter rings in Daniel’s ears, reeling him away from his rambling mind. Lawrence leans forward, setting his elbows on the table. “You really wanna know?”
Daniel nods reluctantly and leans in to hear him better.
“That illegal kick wrecked me. Kreese almost killed me in the parking lot, as you saw. My confidence plummeted. My mom died. Fucking Sid just flaunted his money and made sure I begged for it. So, no, LaRusso. My life hasn’t been sunshine and rainbows so fuck you for thinking you’re better than me.”
Daniel leans back, biting his finger. For some reason, he feels anxious now, like he’s made a bad decision of asking the question and the floodgates of his curiosity have opened. He’s been such an ass and Johnny is a literal diamond in the rough with all its facets. And all Daniel can say is, “I’m so sorry, Johnny. If it makes you feel better, I don’t think I’m that great. I have a failed marriage and I’m new to this dating scene. I’m fucking awkward. You’re a natural at this, you get the babes.”
Johnny freezes, downing the last of his beer. The genuine and intense stare is too much; he looks away and clears his throat. “I don’t need your sympathy.”
“It’s not-” Daniel stops himself and chuckles. Of course, Johnny would think the apology is a sympathetic gesture. Instead, Daniel taps his fingers on the table as comfortable silence falls on them.
It’s odd to feel at ease after that type of revelation on both sides, but it made both men feel normal, validated even.
Daniel glances at the doors leading to the kitchen. “Hey, wanna bet if they mess up our orders? The guy didn’t even take notes.”
Johnny takes his eyes off the enchanting pink glow of the setting sun and turns to LaRusso. He smiles, leaning forward on the table. “I wasn’t going to say anything, but since we’re on the topic… If they forget to hold the onions on the barbecue chicken pizza I ordered, you get to teach three of my classes. What are you betting, LaRusso?”
Daniel smirks, leaning on the table as well. “I’ll give you three car repairs or deep cleaning sessions free of charge. That includes a paint job too if you want a new design on your car. I bet they make my orange chicken have plain rice rather than the egg fried rice I wanted.”
Johnny offers his hand and LaRusso takes it, shaking his hand firmly. The interaction makes Johnny notice the contrast between their hands. His is rough with all the manual labor he’s been doing. LaRusso’s… fucking delicate, smooth hands and they smelled like vanilla for some reason.
Lawrence and LaRusso don’t retract their hands, realizing how much they enjoyed the warmth emanating from their counterparts' touch. The waiter saunters toward their table, balancing their plates on the tray. The waiter is about to flirt with Johnny, but he spots their joined hands and just serves their food before leaving.
Daniel lets out a secret smile at this. He turns to look back at Johnny. They share a knowing grin since Johnny’s pizza had huge onion rings scattered on the dough - he’s definitely not eating those in preparation for later activities - and LaRusso has plain rice for his orange chicken.
“Huh, looks like we can cash in on those bets. I can’t believe how accurate we were on our first date. I wonder if our next one will be like this too?”
“You know, you’re cute when you ramble.” Johnny blurts out while caressing the top of Daniel’s hand.
Thank heavens Daniel hasn’t started eating cause he would’ve choked out of pure shock. “Who knew you’d give out compliments as generously as you give insults?”
Johnny grins, using his free hand to take a slice of pizza. “Yeah? I'm like an onion. I have layers, LaRusso.”
Daniel laughs at the joke. “You watched Shrek?”
“Come on, all the kids liked it at the time. It was released at the same time as Ella Enchanted. Which did you think Robby wanted to watch?”
Both men laugh as they recollect watching both the animated movie and the live action adaptation of the book.
“Ella Enchanted wasn’t that bad as some people say. I think both leads were attractive,” Daniel admits, taking a bite of his food.
“Swinging both ways. Something we have in common already.” Johnny winks, making LaRusso’s cheeks turn redder.
Dinner is filled with banter and laughs as the men start talking about music taste, exes, and the All Valley coming up. Both their students are competing against each other as Miyagi Do and Eagle Fang since fucking Kreese took over Cobra Kai.
“Just because you won last year, doesn’t mean you’ll win this year too.” The moment the words leave Daniel’s mouth, he regrets it. “I’m so-”
Johnny bangs the bottle on the table, turning a few heads in their direction. He doesn’t care, Daniel is out of line. “I actually thought we were past the rivalry bullshit then you say something like that. This was a shitshow waiting to explode and now it did.” Johnny stands up abruptly, making his chair fall back with a bang. “I feel like a gotdamn idiot for even entertaining the idea that we might actually work.” He reaches behind his coat, grabs a one hundred dollar bill, and slams it on the fancy table. “That should cover both our meals. Goodbye, LaRusso. See you at the tournament.”
Daniel blinks, processing the reaction Johnny gave him. He was willing to give this a shot after everything and Daniel's insensitive comment just had to rile him up. Daniel immediately stands up and hollers for Johnny as he nears the doors. “Johnny Lawrence, would you adopt a cat and dog with me?!”
Johnny stiffens, palm on the glass door. Did he hear that right? No, he couldn’t have. That would be too much of a commitment even if they were technically on friendly terms. It also wouldn’t entail anything romantic between them... Johnny isn’t sure he can take that especially since it took him this long to realize his bullying tendencies were a way to express how he truly feels about LaRusso.
It took that disappointed look after Miguel won the All Valley for him to reassess himself. Then the incident with Robby reaffirmed what he felt. If he can’t have LaRusso romantically, then he’ll just have no mercy on LaRusso for breaking his heart. He’s always been an all-in guy after all. Johnny shakes his head. What is he thinking? That lanky, good-looking man isn’t all that the world has to offer.
You’re a coward. I thought strike first, strike hard, no mercy was your mantra. You’ll just let some no-name take your man after everything you’ve done to get to this point?
Johnny ignores his inner voice and tries to push on the door only to have a firm hand turn him around and stern Bambi eyes stare back at him.
“I am not letting you walk out that door until I have my answer.”
Johnny scoffs, avoiding eye contact. A ton of curious and judgemental eyes look back at him, forcing him to stare back at the familiar brown eyes he loves. “You just couldn’t leave well enough alone can you?” The fucking twerp has the audacity to grin at Johnny, making him internally roll his eyes.
“Adopt a cat and dog with me. I promise to take care of them as much as I plan to cherish you. What do you say?”
Johnny blushes at the profession and attempts to glare at LaRusso. He wasn’t fooling anyone. “You’re a fucking drama queen,” he mumbles, looking to the side. The wooden podium with specs of dust suddenly looks interesting.
“I didn’t hear an answer, Johnny.”
“Fine. Yes. We’re starting with a cat first and see where it goes from there. Happy?”
Warm fingers tuck under Johnny’s chin, guiding his face to look at Daniel. “Incredibly. Shall we seal the deal with a kiss?”
Johnny chuckles, cupping Daniel’s cheek and caressing it. He tilts his head slightly to the right and plants a short, sweet kiss on Daniel’s. When he pulls away, Daniel follows him, attempting to recapture his lips but Johnny dodges him. He wraps his arms around Daniel’s waist and rubs circles on his hip. “People are staring. Want to celebrate our new relationship elsewhere?” Johnny nibbles on Daniel’s ear.
“F-Fuck yes. You left the payment on the table. I’ll reimburse the change later.”
Johnny laughs, pushing the door open with his shoulder and bringing LaRusso out on the street with him. They stumble a while before getting to their cars which were also parked beside each other. “We’re too in sync at this point,” Johnny mumbles, earning him a playful slap to the arm.
“Whisk me away, hot stuff. I don’t care where as long as it’s with you.”
Johnny scoffs, hiding a smile behind his hand. He rubs his face and takes out his phone. None of them are sober enough to drive. He’s calling an Uber, thank God Miguel taught him how to use the app before today.
“I want to get a fluffy cat with you. I think you look like a Maine coon guy or maybe an American shorthair. A friend of mine said that were friendly. Maybe he’ll get you to open up more.”
“Whatever you say, princess. Just make sure you have cover all the cat support shit. I am not raising him alone.”
Daniel grins and hums. “You’re not getting rid of me for as long as you live.”
Who knew all it took was a pet proposal to snag his irritatingly handsome rival?