Chapter Text
It was late December of 1984. Nancy's grandma, Marlene, had caught her husband having an affair at her company's Christmas party with another man, her boss.
In a fit of rage, she cussed out every one of her coworkers and left, never looking back.
She packed her belongings, Nancy's as well, and moved them across the globe.
Night was approaching and Nancy knew her grandma would kill her if she was not home before dark.
She spent all weekend roaming the streets of L.A. She couldn't get enough of it. She never thought she'd ever miss the funky smell or the homeless man, Cliff, who used to harass her for money back in elementary school.
Yet here she was, basking in every detail of her old life that she took for granted.
She looked up to the sky. An orangey-red faded from the skyline up to a dark blue. High above her, Nancy could faintly make out stars starting to appear.
That's when the street lamps turned on.
"Ah, shit," she mumbled under her breath.
Nancy knew being anywhere but home when the street lamps turned on meant doom. She also knew she'd be starting at a brand new school tomorrow which meant she'd be in extra trouble when she came home.
She'd been so caught up in everything L.A. had to offer that she completely disregarded the time. She stopped walking to look at her wristwatch. The clock's hands pointed to 5:01.
She huffed and began to jog down the street. There were only a few people, much older than Nancy, walking on the sidewalk. They gave her odd glances but ultimately ignored her.
Nancy was about to cross the street when she noticed something strange out of the corner of her eye.
It was a corner shop with a sign that displayed a huge yellow snake that mockingly stuck its tongue out at Nancy. Beside the snake were two words printed in bold red writing: 'Cobra Kai'.
She looked beneath the daunting sign to a window. Its blinds were drawn and shut tight. The only thing Nancy could see was a dim light glowing around the edges of the blinds.
Beside the window, on each wall, was large black letters that vertically spelled out 'KARATE'.
Nancy recalled the stories her grandpa used to tell her. He was an international champion in his youth. He'd been studying the well known martial art since he was just a boy.
When Nancy moved in with her grandparents in Australia midway through her 6th grade year, her grandpa was insistent that she learn it.
"Since I will never have a grandson I might as well work with what I've been given," She remembers him telling her grandma, "She's going to master karate whether you like it or not."
Her grandpa was in his mid 50s so he was still physically fit enough to help coach her along with a couple of other highly skilled sensei's.
That was back in Sydney. Now she's living only with her grandmother after the 'incident' and is forbidden to even so much as think about karate.
Nancy's eyes trailed to the door only a few feet away. She mentally debated with herself whether to go in or not.
Her body led her to the double doors and pulled her hand up to rest on the door knob. She knew she shouldn't have done it. Especially because the sign hanging in the glass window against a backdrop of shut blinds read 'CLOSED'.
She turned the door knob and walked in. There was a small entry area that had trophies on a tall shelf and posters hung up on the wall. There was a door that led into what Nancy presumed to be an office.
The main room, from the entry area, expanded into the actual dojo. It was large and empty. It had a white mat with a red boarder that covered the entire floor of the dojo.
At the back of the dojo there was a large mirror that covered what seemed to Nancy like a temporary wall. At the end of the back wall there was an archway that lead to another, smaller room.
When Nancy was done scanning the room, the silence suddenly made her feel uneasy. It was an eerie atmosphere. The only sound to be heard was the buzz from the harsh fluorescent lights.
Nancy turned her attention back to the office door. The door had a small glass window but its blinds were shut.
'The owner must be a real private person,' Nancy thought.
Just like outside, Nancy could see a light shining from the edges of the blinds. She didn't know what came over her to knock this time but she did. Maybe because deep down she was scared to discover who might be in there, if anyone at all.
A grumble could be heard from inside, "Who is it?" The man's voice was gruff and it made Nancy start to think twice about what she was doing.
"I'm Nancy," She told the mysterious man, "I know the sign said closed but I just moved here snd I was wondering if I could sign up for classes?"
Nancy could hear shuffling and muffled cussing. She pressed her ear to the door to try and decipher what the man was saying. The door suddenly swung open.
Startled, Nancy quickly drew herself back. The man examined her for a moment. Nancy did the same.
He was tall, but Nancy was as well. She stood at a solid 5 feet and 11 inches. She'd often get picked on for it by the girls at her old school because she would practically tower over them all.
Her grandfather, however, would always reassure her. He told Nancy to be grateful for her tall genetics because they come in handy for karate and intimidating opponents, especially because it was always boys she'd have to fight against.
The man was only taller by couple inches. He had dark blue eyes and a full set of wavy light brown hair. He looked to be in his late 30s.
As Nancy's eyes traveled down she could see a bit of chest hair poking out from the first few buttons undone on his flannel shirt. He wore an unzipped plain beige jacket over it paired with jean pants and white sneakers.
She looked back up to see his once annoyed expression turned to amusement.
"Pretty girls don't need a split lip or a black eye," the man told her, leaning against the doorframe.
"Old men don't need to be eyeing young girls but here we are," Nancy replied.
The man's grin only grew wider.
"I've been studying karate for the past 4 years," She told him, "I was under Sensei George Davies' guidance."
"Look, kid," The man said, "I don't give a rat's ass who taught you karate. I don't teach girls, especially not one's with a sassy mouth."
"Sorry, I promise I'm usually not like that," Nancy lied to him, then said, "You're the only karate dojo I've come across so far. Just give me a chance and I'll prove to you I'm worth while."
The man's intense gaze searched Nancy's. She wanted to take a step back. To reel in everything she said and reverse her movements. But her feet stayed planted to the floor.
"I'm not open for business," The man finally told her.
"I know you're closed right now. I shouldn't have-" Nancy gets cut off.
"I don't think you understood what I just said," The man said carefully, "I don't like it when I have to repeat myself to my students.”
"Are you insinuating that I'm one of your students!" Nancy exclaimed, a rush of excitement went through her.
"Get out, Nancy," The man simply told her. He stepped back and shut his office door.
"I'll be back tomorrow to get paperwork signed!" She called out.
Nancy didn't wait for a reply. Instead, she happily walked out of the dojo. When she stepped outside, cool wind nipped at her nose and seeped through her jacket. The sky was completely dark now, only littered with a few stars high up above.
As Nancy walked home, she put together a plan to sneak behind her grandma's back and continue practicing karate.
When she got home, her grandma gave her a scolding of a lifetime. She used to never hit Nancy because Nancy's grandpa would always do it for her.
Now he wasn't here.
Nancy's grandma grabbed a wooden spoon from a drawer in the kitchen and used it to slap Nancy's hands until they bled.
Her grandfather was harsh too. He'd sometimes put her in a headlock until she'd nearly pass out. Sure there was a bruise here and there but he'd never made her bleed before.
After Nancy was sent to her bedroom, she couldn't stop the tears from streaming down her cheeks. It wasn't because of the pain, she learned to block out pain early when she first started karate.
It was a sense of betrayal. She felt silly for crying over hurt feelings but her warm tears provided a strange comfort that she didn't want to let go of. She bandaged her hands while praying for no one at school to notice.