Chapter 39: 38

Chapter 38

"Wow, the kickboxing club sure is jam-packed today!"

"Do they have an event coming soon, too?"

"That, I'm not sure. I don't think I've seen promotional posters anywhere here, though."

"Should we head over there as well? I'm quite intrigued!"

"There are too many people lining up outside their studio! I think we're safe here…"

"Are they signing up for the club? It's not that time of the year."

The club members were overwhelmed when they found out that Amber went to visit the studio in her spare time.

The guys literally stopped whatever they were doing just to go, and meet her.

Apparently, her friend wanted to try out another sport, that's why they came here.

The members prepared ash berry juice in which Amber was surprised with because that was her favorite! She didn't give much thought to it, though, for it might just be a coincidence—but that's where she was wrong.

All members of their club were duly informed of her dislikes and preferences.

"Are you good at hand-to-hand combat?"

Pepper shook her head humbly. "I train sometimes, but I wouldn't say I was particularly good at that."

The guy who introduced himself as Winston threw a meaningful glance at Amber. "You don't train with each other?"

How strange.

Amber and Pepper were members of the same pack, and they seemed really close.

Otherwise, the former wouldn't be here just to accompany a friend who was still undecided about her final choice.

Even though they were facing a prospective club member, their attention remained focused on Amber.

Right now, their female ace was forced into a conversation as the boys gushed over her unexpected appearance. Amber was talking to approximately ten kickboxers all at the same time.

And everyone found it cute when they saw her panicking at the amount of attention she was getting.

'She's acting like a newbie…'

Considering her back-to-back championships, she should have already gotten used to the fame.

Yet, here she is…

Getting into a tizz upon the sight of her own clubmates!

"No, Amber and I don't train with each other."

"Was that a mutual decision?"

Pepper tilted her head to one side. "She prefers working on her skills alone. I must say, I'm quite surprised you don't know this, Winston. Her attendance here is a reflection of her personality," she laughed.

Winston scratched the back of his head. "Right…"

"So, how do you train here? Are you all following the same schedule? Also, I've been meaning to ask—how many members do you have in total?"

"There's freedom when it comes to schedule, though the condition for that is… a total of fifty sparring matches should take place every month. Individual trainings are permitted anytime, but official trainings with Coach happen biweekly. That one is required, and everyone must go. We're fifty all in all."

"You spar against each other?"

Winston shrugged. "It's the same thing as the other sport clubs."

"How are you, guys, graded?"

"Technique execution," he replied automatically. "Attendance."

Pepper looked at her struggling friend before she leaned closer to Winston and whispered, "Amber's grades… were they awful? We all know that her attendance record is that horrible!"

"Silly girl," Winston chuckled, and ruffled her hair. "Technique execution and attendance are twenty-five percent each. We don't necessarily have to hit those. As for the last criterion, it makes up fifty percent of our grade."

"That's a big jump. What's the basis?"

"Event participation." He offered her a hinting smile. "Amber participates in every kickboxing competition there is. It's enough to secure a passing grade."

"You're making it sound like your club can tolerate your students' absence and delinquency," Pepper commented. "That's not quite a good impression to have."

Winston just grinned. "Privileges aren't for everyone, Pepper. I bet you know that, too."

Pepper grinned back.

He was telling the truth there.

If privileges were readily available for everyone, then it wouldn't be called a 'privilege'.

Winston was practically saying that no other person would be let off for their misconducts.

He was telling her that Amber was an asset to the club—without actually needing to utter the exact words.

"Will there be technical lessons for newbies?"

"We don't usually acquire newbies. Almost everybody, if not all, had a background in kickboxing before they signed up. If I remember it correctly, we still need to meet a certain number of newbies first before the club decides to offer technical lessons. Otherwise…"

"Otherwise?"

"Coach won't meet the newbies."

"Eh?" Pepper groaned. "Then, how do you expect the newbies to learn, and do better?"

"The Captain will train them himself."

"I'm not sure if that's a good idea. Coaches are professional. Newbies need professional guidance. Is he that qualified? I mean, your Captain…"

You are reading story The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight at novel35.com

"You don't know who the Captain is?"

"I do fencing. Woodridge is huge. You can't expect me to be familiar with every student here," she said in defense.

Winston looked at her intently—searching for the truth in her eyes. 'Was she just bluffing?'

A few seconds later, he raised his hands in surrender. "I suppose…"

Pepper looked at her wristwatch, and muttered a cuss. "Oh, no! We have to go."

"So sudden…?"

"We haven't had lunch, yet." Pepper grimaced inwardly. She could already picture the annoyed look on her brother's face. They only have twenty minutes left until break time is over. She didn't expect she'd lose track of time! "Anyway, thank you for having us. We don't want to impose on all of you any longer. Please pardon our sudden intrusion!"

"No need to be so formal, Pepper."

"I'll let you, guys, know once I've made up my mind!" She showed him an 'okay' gesture with her fingers before she ran up to Amber, and stole her away from her thrilled clubmates. "Hello! I'm sorry to interrupt, but we'll be taking our leave now!"

The senior students looked displeased by her announcement, but she could only smile at them apologetically in return.

Amber bowed down to them in respect before she came to follow her wordlessly. The guys were huffing in protest.

They wanted to spend more time with Amber Santiago for this might be their first and last chance!

She rarely comes in here, after all.

Bump.

"Make way. They're coming!"

"Who?"

Pepper came to a sudden halt when she saw the number of students swarming outside the studio. Amber accidentally bumped her head against her back before she looked up, and asked her, "Is there an event I didn't know of?"

Pepper stifled a laugh. She wanted to say 'you're the main event'. However, Amber wouldn't probably get the message behind that—and even if she did, she'd might say something along the lines of 'you overestimate me'.

But still, the level of these students' curiosity gave Pepper a shock!

Did they know all this time that Amber was here?

Pepper held her hand firmly. "Let's go…"

"Which club are we headed to next?"

"What? No! That's enough for today. That took longer than I expected. I didn't think I'd enjoy having a conversation with people I just met."

Amber smiled warmly. "That makes me happy."

"How about you?" Pepper asked all of a sudden. "Are you happy?"

Amber did mention that she couldn't push herself to speak to any of her clubmates because they were too intimidating—not to mention, more than half of them were men. Thankfully, she decided to pop in this time, and there, they discovered how warm and welcoming the club members were.

And they really didn't hold back after they heard Amber greeting them so meekly!

Was that the first time she initiated to speak to them?

"Why are you asking me that? I'm already part of the club. Of course, I'm happy."

"You missed my point." Pepper rolled her eyes jokingly. "You said they were intimidating, right? Was your opinion of them still the same after this experience?"

"The way they talked… it was as if they were talking to a child. They sounded gentle and friendly," Amber admitted quietly. "They still look terrifying, though."

"No way. They're the same age as Lukas! You've seen how they interacted with you." Out of the blue, Pepper turned to her, wide-eyed. "Wait, did they… harass you? Verbally?"

"No," Amber gasped, horrified. "They were just… huge."

"Huge, huh?" Pepper hooked a finger under her chin. "Well, they did sit down on the floor to talk to you. Else, they would have been looking down at you the entire time. Is there a height requirement in your club?"

"None that I'm aware of…" she trailed off. "The Captain is very particular about one's constitution, though. Height must be one of the 'unspoken' requirements."

Pepper made a face. "Now that I think about it, your Captain wasn't there. I understand that we're on break, but… the other members stayed behind to continue training."

"I rarely see him, too. He's a busy man."

"It's just weird for a Captain to be nowhere to be found! Usually, they're the most hardworking from the lot, right?"

Amber pursed her lips. "Were you disappointed because you didn't meet him? I can—"

"No need," Pepper cut her off. "It's fine, Amber. I wasn't disappointed or anything of the sort. Personally… I think your club is amazing. They're easy to get along with. That's a good environment for someone who wishes to pursue sports. Our club, on the other hand…" She bit the insides of her cheek, and started walking again. "Meh."

Amber chuckled softly. "I know you're in love with fencing. You're hiding your true feelings," she teased.

Pepper denied that strongly by covering her ears. "Lalalalalalala…"

"If only I could visit your studio…"

Pepper stopped acting silly, and quickly responded to that, "You're very much welcome to do so! What's stopping you?"

"I feel like it's too much imposition."

She blinked at her friend, her throat going dry.

She couldn't reply right away.

Imagine Amber Santiago, known for missing every kickboxing meeting, walking into another club studio…

That would surely create a fuss!

However, Pepper would never admit that to her.

"Who knows? You might abandon kickboxing for fencing! There's no telling," she chirped.

Amber laughed with her. "You might not want to bet with me on that, Pep."

"I know, right? You'll just win, and crush my hopes in the process."

You can find story with these keywords: The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight, Read The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight, The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight novel, The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight book, The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight story, The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight full, The Flower that Blooms in the Moonlight Latest Chapter