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[Gideon told Paul that it wasn't his fault. Lazarus told him there was nothing he could have changed. God picked up his pieces and fit them back into this semblance of self.

But no one has been unabashedly proud of him, a thing that he shouldn't even want -that he didn't want, until it was given, and the void of an unmet need opened up to swallow it like the cracks of drought-ravaged earth under rain.]

Thank you, sensei.

[There's still that awful vulnerability, but with it, there's a rallied resolve. It comes back like thawing fingers, all necessary pins and needles.]

But with respect - if I was a badass, so were you, and I might have called them, but you taught them. You made us a team, not strangers.

[The training, the movies. Even the littering, in its own way. All these things that added up to more than Paul expected.]

You gave us Cobra Kai. And Cobra Kai never dies.

[Johnny was proud of Paul. Through and through and he wanted the kid to understand just how much his actions had an impact on this world. At least in Johnny's opinion here.]

Don't mention it.

[Except please mention it. Johnny was just as starved for validation in his own life and hearing what Paul had to say next made a little but very apparent grin form on his lips.]

You're damn right it doesn't.

And I'm not going to argue with any of that. And just because the fight is over doesn't mean another one isn't around the corner. There's plenty more we can do to be ready for the next one.

[It will take more than one conversation to set things right. Paul has work ahead of him, long and difficult. But this feels like the ground underneath him is a little firmer, and as he's sure Johnny would say, you can't kick ass without a strong base. It makes Paul smile, that thought. Just a little bit.]

You're right. And I want to be there for it. We have a dojo to get into shape.

[He's part of that, still. He belongs to something.]

I should let you get back to training. But I'll be there for the next practice, sensei.

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