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Novel Catalog
Chapter 5
“Her name? Bonnie Shepard. B-O-N-N-I-E, S-H-E-P-A-R-D.”
“Please hold, sir. Let me check the records.”
A minute later, the voice on the line sounded shaky.
“Y—you’ve made a mistake. Bon—” She coughed, trying to regain her composure. “Bonnie Shepard hasn’t broken any law or escaped from the police.”
“If you make a false report again, we’ll charge you.”
With that, the line went dead.
Gresham stood there, stupefied. Vera, who had been standing beside him, heard everything the officer had said and looked just as stunned.
“Are you done? I’m going upstairs,” Bonnie said, her voice flat as she walked away.
Vera watched her go, a mix of pity and something else she couldn’t quite name in her eyes. After all, Bonnie may have been a disappointment in many ways, but she was still her daughter.
“I’m sorry, Bonnie. We were wrong about you,” Vera said quietly, the apology slipping out, almost as if she hadn’t meant to say it.
Bonnie stopped and turned, her gaze flickering to Vera. That woman hardly ever apologized to her, and when she did, it felt strange. Unfamiliar.
Gresham sighed, rubbing his forehead. “I was just worried about you. Anyway, I apologize.”
Bonnie’s frown deepened. “It’s okay.”
The living room fell into an uncomfortable silence, the weight of the unspoken tension hanging in the air. Bonnie spoke first, her tone short. “I’m hitting the sack.”
“Wait!” Vera called out, her voice edged with frustration. “What on earth happened the other day? Why did you get taken away?”
“I told you, it’s classified. I’ll tell you when the time is right.” Bonnie’s tone was unwavering, though a small part of her longed to just let it all out.
Vera was losing her patience. “Stop lying to me, Bonnie! I want the truth!” But when she saw Bonnie’s unyielding expression, she decided to change the subject. “The school called. They said they might kick you out if you skip classes again.”
Bonnie waved it off casually. “I’ll handle it.”
Vera’s anger flared. “Handle it? How? Do you think you’re the principal? You’re twenty years old, Bonnie! You could’ve graduated ages ago if you hadn’t skipped school so much. You even took a whole year off before!”
“Trina was born on the same day as you, and she’s already a sophomore at Pyralis University! And if you keep fooling around, you’ll never get into college!”
Bonnie had explained to her parents why she had taken a break from school, but they never believed her. They scolded her for lying, dismissing her reasons as mere excuses.
This time, she didn’t bother trying to explain again.
“Don’t worry, I’m not going to some third-rate college. I’ll be going to Pyralis University.”
“Pyralis University?” Vera could hardly believe her ears. “That’s the best university in Pyralis! Only the top students get in there! Trina worked hard day and night to get in!”
“You’ve repeated grades for two years, Bonnie. What makes you think you can get in?”
Bonnie’s confidence was unshaken. “I’ll have no problem getting in if I become the top scorer in the entrance test.”
Vera was truly exasperated by now. Her lips parted, but she couldn’t find the words to respond. By the time she regained her composure, Bonnie had already disappeared upstairs to her bedroom.
Bonnie had been working on her research for two days straight and was exhausted. As she got ready to shower, her phone rang. It was a video call from one of her best friends. She answered it, and a handsome man’s face appeared on the screen.
“Hey, the Knight wants to have a game with you,” he said, grinning widely.
Bonnie raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “Are you sure it’s him?”
“100%! He’s been waiting for your reply!”
“Okay, I’m in,” Bonnie said, her voice steady but with a spark of excitement.
“That’s terrific!” Heath Rice, her friend, practically jumped through the screen. “The Shepherd and the Knight! This is going to be the game of the century! I can’t wait. I’ll tell him right away!”
“Sure.”
After hanging up, Bonnie took a hot shower to clear her mind, then lay down to sleep, her thoughts already drifting to the upcoming game.
The next morning, at 6:00 a.m., Bonnie left her house wearing a tank top and leggings. She hadn’t trained in kickboxing for a while, so she decided to work out in the park.
As she walked through the park, she noticed an elderly man shadow boxing, with a small crowd of his peers watching and cheering him on.
“Way to go, Orson!”
“No one can take a punch like that!”
The elderly onlookers showered Orson Steele with praise, but Bonnie’s sharp eye caught the flaws in his form.
“Your footwork is poor, and your strikes are sloppy,” she muttered under her breath.
The elderly men overheard and turned to look at her, skeptical.
“Hey, young lady, what do you know about kickboxing?” one of them called out.
“Don’t talk about what you don’t know, okay?”
“Yeah, Orson’s been practicing for over a decade. He knows what he’s doing,” another chimed in.
But Bonnie was undeterred. “I was just telling the truth. He wasn’t doing it right.”
“Watch your mouth, young lady!” Scott, a big fan of Orson, had a short temper. He clenched his fists. “Get lost, or I’m going to—”
“Leave her alone, Scott. She’s just a kid.”
Orson walked over with a friendly smile, his hands raised in a peace gesture.
“So you know some kickboxing, huh?”
Bonnie nodded. “Yup.”
Orson studied her face for a moment, clearly intrigued. There was something in her expression that made him think she wasn’t lying.
“How long have you been doing it?”
Bonnie thought for a moment. “Since I was three.”
The group burst into laughter.
“You hear that? Kickboxing since three years old? I’ve been around for years, but I’ve never met anyone so full of shit!” Scott laughed so hard he nearly doubled over.
Bonnie remained impassive, unphased by their mockery.
Orson stroked his beard, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully. “You said I wasn’t doing it right. Why don’t you show me the right way?”
Bonnie glanced at the time. She had about an hour before she had to get to school. “I’ll show you, but only this once. Pay close attention, okay?”
Scott scoffed, rolling his eyes. “What a show-off! If she can pull this off, I’ll shave my head and do a headstand—”
Before Scott could finish his sentence, his jaw dropped, eyes wide in disbelief.