Early Bird (Erkenci Kus)(Part 2)

9. Bows, arrows and really bad kofta

"What's Mr Can doing now?" Sanem asks, pausing with two small flower arrangements in her hands.

They have been putting up the outdoor decorations for almost an hour now and it was the first time he's emerged from the house.

"Huh?" JJ lifts his head and looks at Can was carrying a board with a target out. "Is that a target board?" Sanem rolls her eyes when he gasps. "These rich people and their weird games, honestly."

Sanem squints, watching Can set up the board across the pool.

"I wonder if he's planning to tie us to it and shoot at us with something?"

Sanem wrinkles her nose, scoffing quietly at the idea but her eyes not leaving the board. We were pretty early...maybe we caught him in a bad mood...

"Maybe it's for Miss Polen? Mr Can's going to put an apple on her head and shoot an arrow at it like they do in the circus. Hmm..." JJ hums, already envisioning it.

"For Polen you say?" Sanem asks with a glare, squeezing the flowers. She just heard 'for Miss Polen'.

"Hm hm," JJ nods.

I'd like to 'hit' an apple with an arrow on top of her head... Sanem sighs inwardly and looks at the house where Polen was walking out, her eyes bugging out of her head almost right away.

Polen is striding confidently after Can, equipped with a bow, a quiver and arrows. She sends Sanem a smirk in passing and winks at her.

"Why does she have a bow and arrow?" Sanem asks.

"Oh, guess she found it. She said she was looking for it earlier in those boxes." JJ leans over and whispers, "Did you know she's a professional archer? She even has a license."

Beautiful, smart, athletic...and an archer... and Can likes a woman who can shoot a bow... Sanem looks between Can and Polen once, then twice. "Oh very clever Miss Chicken Skewer. Very clever," Sanem whispers. She obviously knows he likes that sort of thing too and this is her way of winning him over... I see what she's doing!

"What? Miss Chicken Skewer? Because she's so thin?" JJ starts wheezing, laughing as he shakes his head. "Why is that so funny to me?" He keeps laughing and grabs onto Sanem's arm to stay steady. "You're so strange...Oh my God!" He chuckles some more. "Don't let her hear you though," he says, his laughter ceasing slowly.

I don't care if she hears me. Sanem narrows her eyes. "I'm Artemis in this story, not her."

"Artemis?" JJ looks at her.

"Artemis," Sanem nods. "I'm the best archer there is."

"Right," JJ lifts a brow.

Sanem puts down the decorations and turns to make her way over to Polen, who is lining up an arrow.

"Where are you going?" JJ hisses. "Sanem? Come back!"

"I'm going to aim right for the middle and shoot the apple."

"What?"

Sanem ignores him while she walks, watching Polen loose the arrow and hit the circle just outside the bullseye before smiling.

"Hello Polen," Sanem says when she's next to her.

"Hello Sanem."

"So you like archery too, huh?" Sanem asks and looks at the target. "I love it dearly myself."

"Oh?" Polen questions, looking at Sanem. "I had no idea you were interested in sports."

"Actually, archery is my favorite sport. How can I not like it? I mean, it's been passed down from my great grandparents to my grandparents to my parents and my aunts and uncles and down - "