Not A Monster
Pairing - Axel Kovačević x Keene!reader
Word count - 9,164
Warnings - Kwon's death, canon Cobra Kai violence, abuse from Sensei Wolf, brief mentions of addiction, characters are potentially ooc, blood, weapons, swearing, guilt
Summary - at the Sekai Taikai, you catch the eye of the male Iron Dragons captain and he catches yours. after a certain tragedy, you find yourself comforting the boy whose world was slowly crumbling around him
A/N - hey y'all... this is very out of nowhere, huh? basically long story short, Axel hyperfixation goes brrrr and I cannot stop thinking of him. I've made several fan edits of him over on Instagram and I wanted to bring some of the love over onto my tumblr. I know this is out of the blue and unexpected, but y'know I enjoyed writing this so... that's all that matters and I do have a potential part 2 in mind following what happens in pt. 3 of season 6 as per y'all, please send in requests, feedback, and enjoy!!!
To say your life had been changed drastically within the span of a month was no lie. Your dojo, Miyagi-Do, had been given the huge honour of competing within the Sekai Taikai, and you’d been one of the six fighters picked to represent your dojo in the prestigious competition. Little did you know, your whole life was going to be flipped around in those fateful days you spent in Barcelona for the competition.
Firstly, you met a boy. A boy from another dojo.
Axel first caught your eye when you and the other Miyagi-Do’s were watching the captains all taking pictures in the aquarium. He had a steeled expression with his arms folded across his chest, forcing a smile on his face when the photographer called him out on his expression. You had tried to hunt him down after the photos were taken to talk to him but you quickly lost him in the crowd despite his height and stature.
The next time you saw Axel was in the first round of the competition. Miyagi-Do was one of the first four dojos picked to compete and despite your best efforts, you were eliminated first. But your journey in the Sekai Taikai wasn’t over despite the setback. You watched as the competition went down to just three members of Cobra Kai, and all six members of the Iron Dragons. You watched as four of the Iron Dragon members stepped off the mat, leaving their captains open, Axel being one of them. Your eyes widened in awe as you witnessed Axel take down both Kwon and Yoon with ease, neither one of them landing a hit on them as he flipped them onto their backs with practised ease.
“Close your mouth. You’re practically drooling,” Eli hissed under his breath as you closed your mouth, unaware it had dropped open. As the judge announced that the Iron Dragons were the winners of that round, you watched Axel and the female captain cross to their sensei, invoking more curiosity as to the mystery that was Axel.
After the day's events, you headed to your changing room to change and head back to the hotel, wanting to rest and focus on the next day of events. As you walked past a room, you noticed Axel and his sensei training. You observed them quietly, listening as Sensei Wolf berated Axel before slamming his padded hand into the side of Axel’s head, making you fight back a gasp as Axel shrunk down, recoiling from the hit. As Axel shrunk away from Sensei Wolf, he looked over and locked eyes with you, his eyes fearful and sad. You longed to step in and try and protect him from his brutal sensei, but as you moved to step forward, Axel’s head shook just the slightest amount, stopping you in your tracks and telling you that you needed to leave and against your better wishes, you complied.
That night, you were struggling to sleep after what you witnessed. You knew it would be best if you told one of your sensei’s about what you witnessed but you didn’t want to bring any risk to Axel because of it. You knew Daniel would go straight to those in charge of the Sekai Taikai to report Sensei Wolf, but your dad or Chozen would probably try to attack Wolf directly, possibly getting Miyagi-Do disqualified with their actions. Unable to sleep, you climb out of bed, trying to stay as quiet as possible so as not to disturb Sam, who was sleeping in the bed next to yours. You slipped some shoes and a hoodie on before grabbing your keycard and phone to go for a walk around the hotel to try and clear your mind. As you walk around, you stumble across a drink vending machine and decide you want some water, you pay the money required and wait patiently as the drink drops, making you attempt to shush the machine for the loud noise. As you retrieve your water and straighten up, you come face to face with Axel, who looks just as shocked as you did at the realisation of each other’s identities.
“Axel, right? You’re up late.” You attempt to quip, trying to keep the mood light.
“Yes. And I could say the same for you,” Axel returns, swapping positions with you so he can get a drink at the vending machine.
“I’m y/n. I only caught your name because well… you’re the Iron Dragons captain, they couldn’t rave about you more out there on the mat.” You introduce yourself, noticing how Axel was still in training gear. From the way he chugged his water mere seconds after it came out of the machine, you could only assume he had just been up training.
“It’s pretty late for training, isn’t it?” You ask quietly, bringing attention to Axel’s outfit choice as he shrugs.
“Always time for training,” he replies simply. There was an unspoken awkwardness between the two of you. He knew you saw him and his sensei and you knew that he knew about it.
“I saw you and your sensei earlier. Is everything okay?” You ask cautiously, watching as Axel’s demeanour becomes sheepish, his eyes flicking to the floor as he nods.
“He trains me to be the best. It’s because of him I never lose,” Axel replies, no doubt an answer that had been drilled into him to prevent Sensei Wolf from being outed.
“But there are other ways of teaching. Ways that don’t terrorise you,” you insist, your heart panging with sympathy for the boy standing before you.
“My sensei is the best,” Axel says, almost as if he were trying to convince himself instead of you.
“He might be a world champion, but that doesn’t give him the right to treat you like that. I mean, my dad’s got unconventional teaching methods but not to that extent,” you argue softly, feeling awful that Axel was subject to such treatment from someone who was supposed to treat him with respect.
“Look, we should really get some rest, it’s been a long day. But, if you ever need someone to talk to, you can find me around.” You offer softly before bidding a quiet goodbye to the taller boy and making your way back to your hotel room for the rest of the night.
The next few days of the competition, Axel took you up on the offer you had given him that night and pulled you aside into quiet locker rooms to talk and spend time with you to get his mind off the brutal training Sensei Wolf had put him through. You even spent some evenings together, sneaking out to the beaches of Barcelona without your teams knowing to spend more time together. Before you knew it, you were crushing hardcore on the Iron Dragons captain and you had no idea how to handle it. You couldn’t tell anyone from your dojo, especially your twin brother Robby or your father, Johnny. So you resorted to keeping it a secret, until one day while you and Axel hid in a locker room, Axel confessed his feelings for you. The confession completely took you aback, you never expected Axel to feel the same way and before you knew it, your lips met his in a moment of tender embrace, solidifying your relationship.
The two of you decided to keep your relationship a secret for the rest of the competition, knowing it could put Axel in danger from Sensei Wolf if the truth came out. You already knew he wasn’t even supposed to speak to anyone from another dojo, so you could only imagine how Wolf would react if he found out Axel was dating someone from an opposing team. And you knew if the truth came out, Robby, Johnny, and potentially Miguel would all be out for blood with how protective they all were. So you resorted to waiting until the Sekai Taikai was over completely before you and Axel came clean about your relationship.
And then, on the day of the semi-finals, the competition descended into chaos.
You were watching Robby’s fight against Axel, hating that the luck of the draw had pitted your boyfriend and your brother against each other now, meaning only one of them could make it through to the finals. Axel was up by five points as Robby did his best to counter and defend against Axel’s ruthless attacks. In the spur of the moment, Axel shoved Robby aside, right into Kwon’s hands as he watched from the sidelines. Taking the opportunity he had to send an elbow into Robby’s side.
“Hey!” Both you and Miguel cried out at the cheap shot, immediately attempting to rush to Robby’s aid, but you were stopped by Axel sticking out a hand to catch you.
“He is not worth it,” Axel says, his glare fixed on Kwon.
“He hurt my brother, Axel,” you argue quietly, observing how Miguel gets up in Kwon’s face, both he and Robby being shoved back by Kwon and Yoon as the judge and Gunther attempt to regain control over the chaos. Before you knew it, Gunther was on the floor, knocked out from a harsh punch from one of the senseis from Tiger Strike, evidently still furious about their disqualification. That single action kicked off a full-scale brawl between every dojo that was in attendance at the competition.
In the chaos, you got separated from Axel, and both of you had to fend off people from other dojos as they threw punches and kicks. You were able to hold your own, but you couldn’t help but gaze over at Robby, worry clutching at your stomach as you saw him struggling in a fight against Yoon and Kwon while Miguel was occupied with some Iron Dragons students. In the spur of the moment, you rush over, kicking Kwon away from Robby.
“y/n?” Robby asks, eyes wide at your sudden appearance.
“I got your back,” you replied, moving to stand back to back with Robby. The two of you are able to hold your own for a while, and then Robby notices Tory struggling in a fight with Zara.
“Go and help her, I can hold these assholes off,” you say confidently, landing a solid kick to Yoon’s chest, sending him stumbling back while Robby darts off to help Tory with Zara. After a bit more time fighting with the two Cobra Kai students, Kwon eventually gets the upper hand on you, punching you in the stomach before landing a kick to the side of your head, sending you to the ground, wheezing and trying to recover your breath while the world spins around you.
Unbeknownst to you, Axel had witnessed the entire moment. In a fit of rage, he threw the member of Dublin Thunder he was fighting aside and stormed over to Kwon, engaging him in a fight while you struggled to get to your feet.
“y/n, are you okay?” Sam asks, rushing over to you in the chaos while you sit up.
“I’m good, let me just get up,” you say, taking Sam’s outstretched hand and letting her help you to your feet, shaking your head to focus yourself, aware that you could be dragged into another fight at any moment.
“y/n!” You turn around at the sound of Axel’s voice, seeing him pushing people aside to get to you, now free from his battle with Kwon.
“Axel…” you mumble gratefully, approaching him, your steps clumsy as he catches you quickly, his eyes darting around for any further danger to you.
“Are you okay?” Axel asks, holding you at arm's length so he can look you in the eye.
“I’ll be okay when this damn fight is over,” you say, laughing humourlessly, fighting back a wince when Axel’s fingers delicately run over the spot Kwon’s foot had connected with the side of your head. Before you can say anything else, you catch sight of movement behind Axel.
“Axel, look out!” You say quickly, causing Axel to whirl around, keeping himself in between you and his opponent. While Axel fights Kwon, you’re once again dragged into a fight, this time against a member of the West End Warriors. Despite your throbbing head, you held your own and Miguel fought by your side, both of your moves synchronised and calculated as you fend off those trying to attack you.
As you grab the West End Warrior by the gi, ready to shove them away, a pained scream rings out across the room, stopping everyone in their tracks. All eyes fall to the centre of the mat as people begin to gather around.
“Axel…” you mutter, your heart dropping to your stomach as you push your way forward, terrified at what you might see. You push forward, a gasp hitching in your throat when you catch sight of Kwon’s still body, a knife sticking out of his chest and blood pooling around his body on the middle of the mat. You couldn’t help but avert your eyes, feeling sick at the sight before you and in shifting your gaze, you caught sight of Axel. He looked horrified, his eyes fixed on the sight of Kwon’s body with Daniel kneeling alongside him.
The next few minutes were a blur. You were aware of Gunther calling out for the live feed to be cut and gathering everyone’s attention while someone from the Sekai Taikai staff ran off to get an ambulance for Kwon. You heard Gunther telling everyone to grab their belongings and go back to their hotel rooms, stating that the competition was being cancelled and everyone was to be sent home.
At the news, there was an audible gasp and clamouring from the dojos but after Gunther reiterated his point, firmly instructing everyone to leave, people complied. You followed the Miyagi-Do’s back to the locker room, all of you changing back into your street clothes before grabbing your gear and making your way back to the hotel. You noticed that your whole journey through the building, you hadn’t caught sight of Axel the whole time, since you realised Kwon was dead.
“Looking for someone?” Sam asks, sidling up alongside you as you enter the hotel lobby, noticing how your eyes flicked around the room.
“What? No, I’m just… trying to process what happened.” You try to deflect, looking over at Sam as she smiles sympathetically.
“Nothing to do with Axel then?” She queries softly, not missing how you tensed up slightly at the mere mention of your boyfriend.
“What are you talking about?” You asked, trying to act casual as the two of you got into the elevator to head to your hotel room.
“I saw the way he helped you. He didn’t hesitate when he saw you on the floor. Is there something going on between the two of you?” Sam asks, her voice soft as she looks over at you while your grip tightens on the handle of your bag.
“I’ll explain when we’re in our room,” you say quietly as the elevator doors open, allowing you to get off and make your way to your hotel room with Sam in tow. Once the door was closed and you were confident your conversation wouldn’t be overheard, you turned to Sam.
“This stays between us, okay? Dad and Robby can’t know, at least until I’m ready.” You start, pacing anxiously as Sam perches on the end of her bed, her eyes following you as you move.
“I won’t tell a soul,” Sam promises, patting the space beside her to encourage you to sit down, which you do, anxiously fidgeting with your hands.
“Okay, the first day of the competition, when I was getting ready to leave and I saw Axel training with his sensei but… Wolf really doesn’t treat him well. I wanted to step in but I could’ve hurt Axel more by doing that. And later that night I bumped into Axel by the vending machine and we got to talking. I offered him a listening ear if he needed it and we met up in secret quite a few times and I kinda fell for him and clearly he felt the same way because… yeah. We were going to keep it a secret until the competition was over. I didn’t want him getting in trouble with his sensei.” You explain, your heart pounding so loud it was all you hear, terrified of what Sam might say.
“I can understand why you both kept it a secret. The last thing we needed was Johnny trying to pick a fight with Axel over it,” Sam says, making you laugh slightly at the mental image of your dad trying to fight Axel.
“I’m really worried about Axel, Sam. He disappeared after everything that happened with Kwon.” You manage to say as Sam reaches out to squeeze your hand softly, understanding your worry.
“I’m sure he’s okay. A lot happened today,” Sam says assuringly, doing her best to comfort you.
“I was so scared. I heard that cry and I was terrified it was Axel.” You whisper, tears welling in your eyes as you relive the moment you heard Kwon’s cry of pain. At the sight of your tears, Sam tugs you into a hug, holding you close.
“Just breathe, okay? I’m sure you’ll be able to see him before we leave,” Sam says, hugging you tightly as you wrap your arms around her middle, embracing the comfort your best friend gave you. Before you can say anything in response, you hear a clear knock on the door, making you move away from Sam’s embrace.
“Girls? Can I come in?” You hear Daniel ask, making Sam get up from where she was sitting, crossing to the door while you wipe your eyes furiously.
“Come in, Dad,” Sam says, welcoming her dad into the room as he enters, moving to sit down on the bed opposite you as Sam eases herself down alongside you.
“Are you both doing okay?” Daniel starts, glancing between you and Sam as you both nod slightly.
“As good as we can be, I guess.” You shrug, watching as Daniel nods, the movement so small it almost isn’t visible.
“As you know, the Sekai Taikai has been cancelled. We’ve been given an early flight home tomorrow so spend the rest of the day packing and preparing for the flight, okay? We need to be on the coach at five at the latest. Got that?” Daniel instructs as the two of you nod, taking in every instruction he gives you.
“We got it,” Sam says, a smile on her face as she and Daniel get to their feet, hugging briefly.
“I know today probably rattled you guys a little, so if you need someone to talk to, you can always talk to me, Johnny or Chozen. Or you can talk to each other. Just take it easy these next few days, okay?” Daniel says to you both, glancing between you and Sam before exiting your room. After a brief minute, Sam turns to look at you as you move to grab your suitcase.
“I’m going to check in with Miguel. I haven’t had a chance to speak to him since the fight. Do you want to come? Or I can send Robby over to hang out with you?” Sam says, offering different options to you as you shake your head, plastering a small smile on your face.
“No, don’t worry Robby. I’ll be okay. But if you somehow see Axel, could you tell him I’d like to speak with him? I just want to make sure he’s okay,” you say as Sam nods.
“Got it. If I see Axel I’ll send him your way,” Sam says with a joking salute, making you laugh and roll your eyes, briefly distracted from the worry clouding your mind. After Sam leaves the room, you focus on packing your bag, and playing music from your phone as you focus on the task at hand. When you’re halfway done with the packing, you hear the door open and Sam enters the room.
“How’s Miguel?” You ask, glancing over your shoulder as you fold a shirt before tucking it in your suitcase.
“He’s doing okay. I think he’s ready to go home. Same as everyone else.” Sam admits, grabbing her own suitcase to pack.
“Tell me about it. The sooner we’re home the better.” You agree with a nod. The two of you continue to pack while listening to the music coming through your phone. When you’re both packed, you put your suitcases back on the floor and notice the time, exiting your room and heading to the hotel restaurant to grab some dinner.
After you finished eating, you and Sam returned to your hotel room, wanting to get an early night to be ready for the early morning flight you had to catch. The two of you showered and changed into your pyjamas and got into bed, gossiping and scrolling through your phones to wind down after the events of the day and when you began to grow tired, you called it a night, flicking your lights off and settling down to sleep.
Sleep did not come easy for you. Every time you closed your eyes you saw the image of Kwon’s body sprawled out on the mat with the knife protruding from his chest as his lifeless eyes stared up at the ceiling. And when you tried to shake that image away, Kwon was replaced with Axel. After several failed attempts to fall asleep, you sit up in bed, picking up your phone to check the time and biting back an angry sigh when you see 1:42 displayed across your lock screen. Despite knowing it was the opposite of a good idea, you pushed back the covers and tiptoed out of the hotel room after grabbing a hoodie, and your keycard and slipping some shoes on. Your feet guide you to the hotel room you knew Axel occupied. With Terry Silver owning the Iron Dragons, he had splashed out and ensured that each member of the Iron Dragons had their own individual hotel rooms so you knew there was no risk of disturbing anyone else as you lifted your hand to tenderly knock on the door.
“Axel?” You whisper, trying to maintain an acceptable level of volume for a hotel at one o’clock in the morning. You try knocking a couple more times when you’re met with no response.
“What are you doing?” You jump and whirl around at the sound of a voice coming from behind you, shocked to see your brother standing behind you with a raised eyebrow.
“I could ask you the same question.” You fire back, watching Robby carefully.
“You know this is Axel’s room, right?” Robby asks, gesturing to the door behind you as you nod, trying to remain as calm as possible.
“I know. We’ve become friends and I couldn’t sleep after what happened. I wanted to make sure he was okay,” you say, hoping Robby won’t pick up on your nervousness.
“You made friends with the Iron Dragons captain? You never talked about it.” Robby queries, suspicion riddling his tone as he folds his arms across his chest.
“I don’t need to tell you everything, Robby,” you say quickly, wishing your brother wasn’t so pushy.
“You’re right. You don’t need to. But I can tell you that Axel left earlier. All the Iron Dragons did. They must’ve had a late flight,” Robby says, shrugging his shoulders slightly at the explanation, as your eyebrows furrowed.
“They left? And you’re positive you saw them leave?” You ask, watching as Robby nods.
“They had all their gear as they headed out. It’s the only explanation.” Robby elaborates as you curse under your breath, pulling your phone out of your pocket and scrambling to send a text to Axel.
“Okay seriously, is there something going on between you and Axel? You’re acting weird,” Robby asks, concerned as you hit send on the text before looking back up at Robby.
“If I tell you I need you to promise me that you won’t tell Dad or Miguel,” you say, watching as Robby furrows his eyebrows while unfolding his arms.
“I promise. This stays between us,” Robby says softly, holding his pinkie finger out, reminding you of all the times in your childhood when you and Robby had made pinkie promises. You reach out and interlock your pinkie with his, shaking your hands once before unhooking your fingers.
“Axel and I are dating. Obviously, it’s only been a few days but after what happened I’m worried about him and just wanted to make sure he’s okay.” You explain, not missing how Robby’s eyes widened briefly at the news.
“I can’t say I was expecting those to be the words out of your mouth. But if you like him and he likes you I don’t want to get in the way, even if he did kick the crap out of me during our match,” Robby says with a light laugh, getting you to finally loosen up.
“It was really hard watching you both. I wanted both of you to make it to the finals,” you say quietly, wishing Robby could’ve fought someone else in his semi-final match.
“That’s the luck of the draw. I gotta hand it to him, Axel is a machine,” Robby says with a smile, giving you evidence that he held no ill will towards Axel despite the split lip he was now sporting as a result of his fight with Axel.
“I told you why I was out here. Why are you?” You decide to change the subject, curious as to why your brother was also roaming the hotel halls.
“I was checking in on Tory. Just wanted to make sure she was okay,” Robby says with a light shrug.
“And is she okay?” You enquire, knowing that since Tory had been on Cobra Kai, she might’ve taken the loss of Kwon harder than anyone else.
“She says she’s okay. She said she wasn’t really close with Kwon but I still think that was enough to shake anyone,” Robby says, recalling his conversation with Tory.
“She’s tough. And she’s got you by her side. She’ll be okay,” you say assuringly, moving to hug Robby as he holds you back.
“Thank you y/n/n. Axel’s lucky to have you. I’m sure he’ll contact you whenever he’s able to,” Robby says as you nod against his shoulder.
“Thank you, Robby,” you whisper, holding tight to your brother.
“I’ve got your back. Always,” Robby says softly as he squeezes you a little tighter before releasing you.
“We should probably head to bed. We have to be up in a few hours anyway.” Robby then says, glancing at his phone as you nod.
“You’re right. Good night, Robby,” you say with a small smile before making your way back to your room, sneaking in and settling into bed, hoping to catch a couple of hours of sleep.
A few hours later, you were awoken by the sound of your alarm and you pushed the covers back, groaning at the blaring alarm as you flailed to turn it off.
“Rise and shine,” Sam says, sitting up and stretching as you toss a pillow at her.
“Rise and shine my ass it’s four in the morning,” you grumble, sitting up as Sam flicks the light on. You both get up, taking turns to use the bathroom before getting changed and doing one final check to ensure you have everything packed before making your way down to the hotel lobby with your bags and meeting up with the other Miyagi-Do’s and Tory who, since she was the only American student of Cobra Kai, was given the same flight home as you.
It didn’t take long for Daniel, Johnny, and Chozen to make their way to the lobby after you all arrived, and soon you were loaded on a coach to the airport to begin your journey home. As you waited in the airport for the flight, you found yourself constantly checking your phone, hoping that somehow Axel would respond to your text. The flight felt like it took forever, and no amount of in-flight entertainment was able to take your mind off your boyfriend who was now on the other side of the world on a whole other continent.
When you landed, you, Robby, Johnny, and Miguel were greeted by Carmen and Rosa, both of them welcoming you back with hugs as they fussed over the bruises and cuts you were now all sporting as a result of the brawl. And the six of you made your way home to recover from the events of the Sekai Taikai.
This has brought you to now, almost three weeks since the Sekai Taikai. You had been going strong with Axel since you both made it home after he eventually texted you back, messaging when you could and calling whenever your two time zones allowed. You had opened up to your dad, Miguel, Carmen, and Rosa about your relationship with Axel and while Johnny wanted to kick his ass at first, he soon settled down when you explained how happy Axel made you although you could tell he wasn’t a hundred percent on board.
One day, while you were sitting in your room texting Axel, both Robby and Miguel entered your room, grinning as they sat on the end of your bed.
“You guys know what knocking is, right? I could’ve been getting changed for all you know,” you say, raising an eyebrow as you glance at the two.
“You’ve been hiding away so much. Why don’t you come out with us?” Robby asks, laying back on your bed and staring up at the ceiling.
“Are you missing Axel?” Miguel asks teasingly, lightly poking your knee as he waggles his eyebrows, laughing as you roll your eyes. Miguel had been having way too much fun stepping into a brother role when you found out your dad was dating his mom. And now that they were expecting a baby girl, your bond had only grown stronger.
“Look, not all of us have the luxury of getting to see our partners whenever we want. Sam and Tory live in the Valley. Axel lives on a whole other continent,” you say, your attention drifting back to your phone as you hurriedly type out a response to the new text from Axel.
“Surely we could fly him over, right? The Sekai Taikai is cancelled so it’s not like we have training or any reason to say no,” Robby says, propping himself up on his elbows to look over at you.
“I’m sure Dad would have a million and one reasons to say no,” you say, imagining your dad’s reaction to such a suggestion.
“And my mom would have a million and one reasons to say yes. She’s got your back and so do we. And Yaya too,” Miguel says, both he and Robby smiling at you as your gaze flicks between them.
“You’d really help me out with this?” You ask, curious as to whether they had any ulterior motives behind their actions.
“Why wouldn’t we? You’re clearly missing him,” Miguel says as Robby nods.
“And, you helped us to make up after the whole ‘me joining Cobra Kai’ thing,” Robby adds with a slight laugh, all of you remembering how you’d been the one trying to build the bridge between Robby and Miguel after Robby left Cobra Kai.
“Mom and Sensei have just got home from their hospital appointment so I think now is a good time as any to speak to everyone about it,” Miguel says, getting to his feet with Robby following suit, both of them encouraging you to get to your feet and follow them to the living room where Carmen, Rosa, and Johnny were all sitting on the sofa watching tv.
“Hey, you three. Not up to trouble are you?” Carmen asks, a smile on her face as you all smile at her joke.
“Us? Never.” Robby jokes, slinging an arm around yours and Miguel’s shoulders.
“You look like you have a question to ask.” Carmen then says, noting your expressions and glancing between each of you as Robby drops his hands to his sides.
“I’ve been missing Axel a lot the last few weeks and I was thinking of paying for him to fly out here,” you say, fiddling with your hands as you speak, trying to channel your nervous energy into something.
“No.”
“That’s a lovely idea.”
Your dad and Carmen speak in tandem, giving each other shocked looks at the other’s answer to your sentence.
“Johnny, what’s so wrong about her inviting her boyfriend over to visit for a little while?” Carmen asks, watching as Johnny shakes his head.
“Firstly, he’s the one who kicked the crap out of Robby.”
“Dad, that was a fair fight. He’s really-”
“Secondly, his sensei is the steak stealer who kicked the crap out of me and LaRusso.”
“Come on, his sensei’s actions aren’t his.”
The room explodes into heated discussion as Carmen, Robby, and Miguel defend the idea of Axel visiting while Johnny fights his own corner.
“Look where would he even stay?” Johnny says, leaning back against the couch as he opens a beer.
“I’ll pay for him to have a hotel room nearby.” You shrug.
“No, y/n, he can stay here,” Carmen says, looking over at you with a soft smile.
“Okay, he can take my room and I’ll sleep on the couch.” You amend your statement, smiling gratefully at Carmen.
“Sweetie, you’ve got enough room for you and Axel to both share your room. You’re old enough to make these choices for yourself and I know we can trust you both to be responsible.” Carmen says, looking pointedly over at Johnny, almost daring him to challenge her.
“Besides, it would be very hypocritical of us not to let Axel stay when Tory and Sam have spent multiple nights here.” Carmen then adds, watching as Johnny clenches his jaw, sighing before taking a swig of his beer.
“Fine, but if there’s any funny business his ass is out on the street, got it?” Johnny warns, pointing a finger at you as you nod fervently at his words, showing him that you are taking him completely seriously.
“Thank you,” you say, rushing over to hug your dad and Carmen, grateful they were letting you invite your boyfriend over for a few days. After hugging Carmen and Johnny, you rushed back to your room with Miguel and Robby in tow, all three of you grabbing your laptops and sitting on your bed to look at flights as you texted Axel to let him know the news.
After some careful planning between you, Robby, Miguel, and Axel, you were able to book him a flight out to LA, and you couldn’t help the amount of excitement you were feeling at the confirmation that Axel was going to be spending a whole week with you in LA.
On the morning of the day Axel’s flight was due to land after twelve hours in the air, you were practically bouncing off the walls with excitement, counting down the minutes until Axel’s flight landed. But despite your excitement, you knew you needed to lay down some ground rules with your family to make sure Axel felt comfortable during his visit. Carmen had been taking your every word as gospel, making sure both she and Miguel translated the instructions to Rosa so she could better understand what you were saying. However, Johnny was not as engaged in the conversation, sipping from a beer and rolling his eyes.
“Okay, we get it. Don’t mention the asshole sensei.” Your dad says as you fold your arms across your chest. You hadn’t told your family about the abuse Axel had been dealing with at the hands of Wolf because you knew it wasn’t your secret to share. But you didn’t want anyone bringing up Wolf while Axel was visiting and potentially making him uncomfortable.
“Look, Axel is more than the guy on the mat you saw during the Sekai Taikai, just give him a fair shot.” You plead, watching your dad as he nods.
“My warning still stands. If he pisses anyone off he’s out of here.” Johnny warns, pointing at you while you roll your eyes with a light laugh.
“I promise he’ll be on his best behaviour.” You assure, finally getting a smile from your dad as he crosses to you to ruffle your hair, making you swat at his hand with faux irritation as your phone begins to buzz.
“And that’s my cue to head to the airport. Axel’s flight is landing soon so I need to head out. I’ll see you guys in a bit,” you say, grabbing your keys and heading out of the apartment, getting into your car and driving to the correct terminal, finding a place to park and heading to the arrivals area. You tried your best not to constantly check your phone to see if his plane had landed but the urge to check was too strong. And when you finally got the message from Axel saying his plane had landed you couldn’t help but grin at your phone, texting him back that you were waiting in arrivals once he came through. As people slowly started to trickle through the doors, eyes searching for their loved ones as they scanned the group of gathered people, you kept looking for Axel, waiting for the moment he walked into the room. The moment you saw him, you lit up, he was focused on his phone, his expression set as he wheeled his suitcase alongside him.
“Axel!” You call out, getting Axel’s attention as he looks up from his phone, breaking out into a smile as he shoves his phone into his pocket and strides across to you. The moment you came together, Axel immediately gathered you into his arms as your lips met his, neither one of you wanting the moment to end.
“Hi.” Axel breathes as the two of you pull apart, your lips only millimetres apart.
“Hi,” you respond, both of your smiles wide at getting to see each other again.
“I’ve missed you,” Axel mutters, pulling you in for another kiss.
“I missed you too,” you reply after pulling away, your hands playing with the hair on the nape of his neck.
“Come on. Let’s get you and your stuff back to my place,” you then say, moving to grab Axel’s suitcase as he scoops the two bouquets of flowers off the top of his suitcase, holding them in one hand.
“I got these for you. These ones are for your family.” Axel says, holding one of the bouquets out towards you with a shy smile.
“Axel, you’re so sweet,” you gush, taking the flowers from his outstretched hand and smelling them before reaching up to press a kiss to his cheek in thanks. You then lead Axel to your car, opening the trunk and as you move to lift his suitcase into the trunk, Axel stops you quickly.
“I got it.” He says with a smile, lifting the suitcase effortlessly with one hand and loading it into the trunk and closing the door.
“Alright, show-off,” you tease, handing Axel the bouquet to hold while you get behind the wheel. You drive back to your place, taking the slightly more scenic route to show Axel some sights of LA. Each time you managed to glance at Axel, it took your breath away. The sun caught his skin perfectly, his hair ruffling in the wind that blew through the open window, and the sunglasses he wore framed his face beautifully. Although they concealed his eyes, you could tell they were bright with happiness just from the smile on his face. You couldn’t help but smile at the way Axel’s finger tapped against his thigh as he quietly hummed to the music on the radio while glancing at the sights around him. It was a brief moment in time that made you realise how lucky you were. No one else got to see this side of Axel, and you hoped to show your friends and family that Axel was so much more than the Iron Dragons captain they saw on the mat at the Sekai Taikai.
When you parked the car, you were once again beaten to the trunk by Axel as he handed you your bouquet of flowers with a grin.
“You can carry these.” He says, using his free hand to tuck his sunglasses into his hoodie pocket. As Axel grabs his suitcase handle, slinging his backpack onto his back and picking up the bouquet of flowers he’d bought for your family, you lock your car and once he’s ready, lead him to your apartment, unlocking the door and walking in with a smile.
“Hey everyone, I’m back,” you say, grinning as Axel trails behind you. Everyone’s attention shifts to you as Robby and Miguel rush out from their rooms.
“You must be Axel; we’ve heard so much about you,” Carmen says, rising to her feet and walking over to where you and Axel are standing.
“You must be Carmen, y/n has told me a lot about you. Here, these are for you.” Axel says, holding the other bouquet of flowers out towards Carmen who takes them graciously.
“That’s so sweet, you didn’t need to do that.” Carmen gushes, admiring the flowers as Rosa crosses to you while you hand your bouquet of flowers to Carmen so she could put the beautiful arrangements into vases.
“Axel, this is Rosa. She’s Carmen’s mom.” You introduce Rosa to Axel, smiling as they interact.
“Es muy guapo,” Rosa mutters to you as you nod your head in agreement.
“I know,” you gush, glancing over at Axel and noticing a pink tinge painted across his cheeks.
“Gracias,” Axel replies with a shy smile, making both you and Rosa exchange a shocked look.
“You know Spanish?” Carmen asks.
“I travel a lot for tournaments. It is useful to know the language of the country I am visiting.” Axel says with a shrug, downplaying his statement.
“Axel, you know my brother, Robby. And Miguel,” you say, pointing out Robby and Miguel as they creep closer, smiling at Axel.
“Hey man,” Robby says, holding out his fist for a fist bump which Axel does.
“It’s nice to see you again, this time not as opponents,” Miguel says with a smile, giving Axel a fist bump, too.
“And that’s my dad, Johnny,” you then say, pointing out your dad, watching as he shoots Axel a half-hearted wave from his seat.
“Your father is your sensei?” Axel asks, remembering seeing Johnny at the Sekai Taikai.
“Yeah, he’s one of them,” you say with a light laugh.
“And because of her old man, she’ll know how to kick your ass if you break her heart,” Johnny calls over to you and Axel.
“I wouldn’t do that,” you say quickly, knowing that you could never hurt Axel, even if he broke your heart beyond repair.
“Fine. I’d kick your ass for her.” Johnny then says, pointing directly at Axel who nods.
“I don’t plan on breaking her heart,” Axel says, interlocking your fingers with his as you smile up at him.
“You two are so sweet. I’m so happy for you y/n.” Carmen gushes, crossing to give you a hug, which you accept, mindful of her baby belly.
“Thank you, Carmen,” you whisper gratefully, thankful for her presence in your life. In her relationship with your dad, Carmen quickly became another maternal figure in your life. She never tried to replace your mom, which you appreciated wholeheartedly, but she took you under her wing and cared for you and Robby the way she cared for Miguel.
“You guys have any plans for the rest of the day?” Miguel asks, glancing over at you as you nod.
“We were gonna go to Golf n’ Stuff, hang out there for a while,” you say, explaining the plans you had made with Axel prior to his arrival. You had wanted to go out for a nice dinner date at some point during Axel’s stay, but you figured you’d not do it straight away to allow for Axel to overcome any potential jetlag he might have.
“That sounds fun. Have a good time, guys.” Robby says with a smile.
“Thanks Robby.” You grin, exchanging your secret handshake with Robby before you take Axel’s suitcase and lead him to your room to get him settled in before you head back out again.
“Sorry, this isn’t much,” you say apologetically, tucking Axel’s suitcase aside as you turn to face him.
“It’s perfect,” Axel says, admiring the room. Growing up, he hadn’t had the freedom to decorate a room to his liking. He’d had nothing more than blank walls and a plain bed in his room. He didn’t care about the size of the room because he got to see your personality through the decorations, the small fairy lights that hung above your bed, the pictures of you and your loved ones framed and standing on various desks and shelves. Axel found himself drawn to a picture on your desk. It was one of you and Robby from when you were younger, both of you smiling as you embraced. Axel couldn’t help but feel the corner of his lips twitch up into a small smile as he admired the picture, even years down the line, your smile looked the same.
“I think that’s from our sixth birthday.” You muse softly, moving to stand alongside Axel, regarding the photo with a small smile. It was a time before your mom’s addictions got too bad. She had always tried her best with you and Robby but her addictions had often gotten the better of her, and it had always broken your heart to see her go through all that. You were so unbelievably proud of where she was today after going through rehab and making a better life for herself.
“You were cute,” Axel whispers gently, his gaze fixed on the picture as he speaks.
“Were?” You question teasingly, raising an eyebrow as Axel turns to look at you.
“You still are,” Axel says, his hands moving to rest on your hips as he dips to press a soft kiss to your lips.
“You’re the cute one.” You respond playfully, kissing Axel once again.
“Are you two done? I thought you were heading out?” You both leap apart at the sound of Robby’s voice, seeing him leaning against the doorframe with a raised eyebrow.
“Geez Robby. You couldn’t just walk past?” You ask, glaring at your brother as he chuckles.
“The door was wide open, y/n/n.” Robby retorts.
“I ignore it when you and Tory have a makeout session in the house,” you say with the roll of your eyes, folding your arms across your chest.
“Yeah… but you gave me the perfect opportunity to tease you,” Robby says, shrugging his shoulders unapologetically.
“I’ll get you back at some point,” you say, pointing at Robby as a laugh escapes your lips, accepting the challenge he’s set up.
“Bring it on,” Robby says cockily, eerily reminding you of Johnny.
“It’ll happen when you least expect it. Now, we’re going to head out. I’ll see you later,” you say, taking Axel’s hand and leading him out of the apartment. You both get into the car and you drive to Golf n’ Stuff, excited to show Axel the familiar hang out spot you and your friends often frequented. You paid for you and Axel to have a go around the mini-gold course, playfully competing against each other as you make your way around the course. It was nice to see Axel let loose and have fun. You knew he spent most of his free time training with Sensei Wolf back home. You loved watching Axel celebrate every time he completed one of the courses, he turned to you with the biggest smile as you crossed to him, giving him a kiss in celebration.
After you finished making your way around the courses, you got ice cream and ate it while watching the sun complete its descent and the stars begin to shine in the sky. After finishing your ice cream, you wind your arms around Axel’s middle, shuffling closer into his embrace as you both watch the stars quietly. You remain on the bench for a few minutes, enjoying each other’s company until you hear a small yawn slip past Axel’s lips.
“We should head home. You’re probably exhausted,” you say, detangling yourself from Axel’s arms and digging in your pockets for your car keys, making your way to the parking lot and locating your car.
The drive back to the apartment was quiet. You could tell Axel was ready to fall asleep, so you made your way back home as quickly as possible so Axel could get the rest he needed after a long day of travelling.
When you make it back home, you and Axel head straight to your room and take it in turns heading to the bathroom to get ready for bed. Once you were both ready, you clambered into the bed, and you instantly curled into Axel’s side as he wrapped his arms around you.
“Goodnight ljubav,” Axel whispers, his lips pressing against the top of your head to give you a delicate kiss.
“Goodnight, Axel,” you reply softly, shifting to rest your head on Axel’s chest, allowing your eyes to close as you fall asleep to the sound of Axel’s steady heartbeat.
In the middle of the night, you stir, furrowing your eyebrows as you open your eyes, finding Axel sat upright, his back facing you.
“Axel, are you okay?” You ask quietly, propping yourself up on your elbow as Axel glances over his shoulder to look at you.
“You should be sleeping,” Axel mutters, his gaze never once focusing on you before he turns away again.
“And so should you,” you retort softly, sitting up. When Axel doesn’t react, you move to rest a hand on his shoulder, suddenly gaining his attention as he once again looks over his shoulder at you.
“It’s just jetlag. I’ll get tired soon,” Axel says weakly, his shaky exhale telling you otherwise.
“You sound like something’s shaken you up. Are you sure you’re okay?” You query, moving to sit alongside Axel. The innocence in your voice and the concern written across your face made Axel want to tear down the walls he’d spent years of his life building to protect himself and others from his emotions.
“It’s not anything to do with the Sekai Taikai, is it?” Your question made Axel tense up, giving you the answer.
“I can’t stop thinking of that day,” Axel mutters through gritted teeth, his hands forming fists where they rested on his legs.
“Axel…” you try, your brain scrambling to think of something to say to comfort Axel.
“I didn’t know he had the knife,” Axel whispers, his quiet, weak voice shattering your heart in a way you didn’t think was possible.
“Come here,” you say, moving to sit up against your pillows, gesturing for Axel to lie down alongside you. You bring Axel into your arms as he lies down, settling his head on your stomach as you move to run your hand through his hair. Axel usually kept his hair perfectly styled, but after just a few hours of sleep, it was lying limply against his forehead before you gently brushed it away from his face.
“I didn’t mean for it to happen,” Axel mumbles, his voice muffled by your shirt as you continue to card your fingers through his hair.
“I know you didn’t. No one blames you for what happened. You didn’t know he had the knife so how could you be to blame?” You whisper, holding Axel as close as humanly possible, wishing you could take the pain away from him.
“I should’ve seen it. I could’ve disarmed him.”
“There was too much going on. I don’t think anyone could’ve seen it. Axel, you are not to blame for what happened to Kwon. It was a freak accident. If anyone’s to blame, it’s the idiot who brought the knife into the brawl. I don’t even know where it came from but some idiot must’ve brought it into the fight for Kwon to get it. But my point is that you can’t be blamed for this. And if anyone treats you differently because of it, they’ll be answering to me,” you say firmly, moving to press a soft kiss to the top of Axel’s head.
“Maybe I am just a monster.” Axel’s small whisper was supposed to be unheard by you, but the silence in your room made his words ring as clearly as a bell in your ears.
“You are not a monster. I don’t care what anyone else says. No one should be calling you a monster or making you feel less than what you are. You’re an amazing person, Axel. Not enough people get to see that, but you’re so important and you shouldn’t let anyone make you feel like you’re nothing, or a monster because that’s not true. You’re my everything,” you say, your words finally getting Axel to look up at you, his eyes glassy with unfallen tears that he refuses to let past their defences.
“Why don’t you try to get some more sleep? If you need me, don’t be afraid to wake me up, okay?” You whisper, continue to smooth Axel’s hair back from his face as he curls closer to you.
“I love you,” Axel says softly as your arms tighten around him ever so slightly.
“I love you too,” you respond, pressing the softest of kisses to the top of Axel’s head as his eyes slowly close.
You remain awake for some time, running your hand through Axel’s hair soothingly as you wait for him to fall asleep. Once his breathing evened out and he had completely relaxed in your embrace, you watched him quietly, admiring how the light coming in through your window framed his face. He looked completely at ease and content, curled up in your arms and that was all you wanted. You wanted Axel to be happy and feel safe. And you were going to protect him with everything you had. It didn’t matter if you were protecting him from people who looked at him the wrong way in the aftermath of the Sekai Taikai, or if you had to protect him from his dreaded Sensei Wolf. Axel was worth everything to you, and you’d move heaven and earth just to keep a smile on his face.
I’m in tears this is so good he deserves good things happen to him 😭❤️
