The Serpent Queen

What's the quickest way to make three hundred dollars these days?

Removing the helmet from her head, Phoebe stepped up the steps and into a large fancy building that by now she was nearly familiar with. As she did, she stopped and looked down at her injured leg, she could now put her foot down flat without being bandaged. Though, pain shot through it a little as she did. The girl was determined to complete, do for the sake of that, she decided to do this job and as well as karate by putting barely any weight on it at all.

The thought of doing gymnastics for money rubbed her the wrong way a little. It made her almost feel that she was the Circus-freak. Preform at the behest of her grandfather, while being watched and cheered on by many kids and their parents who couldn't give two shits that she competed in this and give entertainment value. It was a hobby for her. But at the same time, she needed to practice, and she would be getting paid for what she liked to do. She would practice what she wanted to and neither the kids, the parents or her grandfather could tell her what to do. What did they know about competitive gymnastics?

Pulling the strap of her bag up her shoulder, she continued on in through the doors and into the foyer of the country club. Her father hadn't returned yet from the road trip as it had been extended due to his old friend passing away and he along with Johnny travelled to go to the funeral.

Passing the busy reception desk, she made her way to the back of it to the offices. Finding her grandfather's, she knocked on the door.

"Come in." A muffled voice said.

Opening the door, she walked in.

"Ah, Phoebe! What are you doing here?"

"I'm ready to start."

"We just spoke yesterday."

"I told you I would set my own hours and I am. I'm starting today, continuing tomorrow and Wednesday. That's the three days done before the end of the week."

Stavros nodded knowing it was a waste of time to argue with her, "Okay." He stood up. "I'll get things ready for you and I'll send word around the staff to tell the guests that you're performing for them in one of the empty dining halls."

While waiting for her grandfather to come back, she wandered out of the office and began to have a nosey around the lobby. The cool air of the air conditioning still felt like a foreign concept which she should have got used to by now from living in the Valley for almost a year, but it definitely made her feel a lot better and definitely less sweaty. She stood in the same spot and had took out her phone and began texting Miguel.

"Phoebe?"

She glanced up from the screen and her eyes found another teenager that she knew and had bumped into a few times before. He came up to her and was in the club's uniform and had his shoulder length hair in a man bun.

He smiled, "I knew it was you."

"Xander, how are you? I didn't know you worked here."

"I actually just started this summer."

"It's quite the distance from Topanga..."

"It's only thirty minutes." He shrugged.

"Speaking of, are you going to try and take your title back from Miguel in next year's All Valley?"

"Unfortunately not."

"Why? Did he break your ego by winning?" She chuckled.

With a straight face, Xander said, "No. It's because my eighteenth birthday happened a month ago. That was my last All Valley."

"Oh." Phoebe said, glancing down at the ground for a split second.

"Yeah, I'm disappointed about that too. But you Cobra Kai's are good fighters. Probably make it to the finals again." Xander glanced over his shoulder to see an old woman needing help with her luggage. "Excuse me, Phoebe. I have to get back to work. It was nice seeing you."