perfect sokeefe

archery lesson

"No, not like that." Keefe laughed, watching as Sophie shakily held the bow. "Hold it higher. Aim it properly."

Looking over to the side, the boy who had called out to her leaned against a tree. A smug smile graced his lips, his nose scrunched from the cold breeze. A thick cape wrapped snuggly over his body, protecting him from the somewhat harsh winds. In stark contrast to the warmly clothed male, Sophie stood in a plain white and black shirt and pant.

Sophie scoffed, avoiding eye-contact with the handsome individual. "If you're so good at it." She held the bow out to him. "You come and do it."

Keefe walked closer, taking the bow from her hand and stretching the bow string with an arrow. One eye squinted in concentration, he lined up his shot to the messily drawn target on one of the many elk trees surrounding them. Sophie, who was impatiently tapping her foot, froze when the arrow pierced through the bullseye.

"There." He smiled cockily, lightly throwing the bow back. "One of my better shots, I'll admit. Try again."

Sophie huffed, disliking the order. Nonetheless, she aimed her shot, taking a deep breath as she let go of the string. Unlike the other blonde, her's didn't hit the yellow center. Instead, it missed completely, attacking the small bush to the side.

The girl heard a faint chuckle behind her and she turned, agitated. "I'm not as good as you, yes, Keefe, but that's no reason to— oh."

She was met with eyes staring directly at her, a body just inches away from her own. Heat flooded her cheeks, but she stood firm. Stood still, even when she could feel the finger lightly skidding across her bare arm, stood still even when she could feel the warm breath caressing her cheek.

"Let's... try that again, shall we?" Keefe asked. "It's no good, whatever you're doing."

Sophie laughed nervously, hoping he didn't notice the hazardous look she pointed to his lips. "Yeah. Okay."

Sophie stepped aside, hoping the gesture was perceived as a way to make space for her next shot, when really, she just need room to breath. Out of breath, she stood, until realizing Keefe had taken another handful of steps in her direction.

Motionless, she felt his hand enclose around her's as he guided her through the process of shooting an arrow. Instructions were murmured into her ear, and she nodded, slightly dazed from his proximity.

"Stay like this for one moment, please." Keefe let go her her hands, walking away to examine her. Suddenly, she felt cold. "Good posture, Foster."

It wasn't much different from what she was doing previously. Her feet were just stationed differently for more stability. The hand holding the grip of the bow, probably tighter than they should've been, was straight and facing forward. The fingers of the other hand made a gap for the end of the arrow, stretching the string away from the main frame. Her body faced the right direction while her face faced forward.

"Now," Keefe came closer and the warmth returned. "You need to learn how to aim."

"At the target?" It was a dumb question for the boy she felt dumb with.

"No, Foster." He snickered. "For my heart. But i'm afraid you've already hit it perfectly in the bullseye."

The blonde girl rolled her eyes in response, gesturing for him to continue his lesson.

Sophie wasn't sure how the blonde boy intended to teach her how to aim, but whatever she had in mind had nothing to do with him bending down to reach her eye-level, his chin barely grazing her shoulder. Both of his hands loosely gripped her wrists, guiding them to accurately point at the target.

Keefe's lips neared her ear. "Focus on the target's bullseye. I find it easier to shoot with one eye open, but i'm not sure whether that'll work for you. Do what you think is easiest." His hand ruffled her hair. "Good luck."

Sophie stood straight once he left. Was the confidence that made her stand real? Of course not, but she found it easier to fake. Narrowing her eyes like she had observed Keefe doing, she let the bow string go. The arrow whizzed through the air, and finally hit the target. Close to the middle, but not quite there.

Sophie looked in Keefe's direction, just to find him already staring at her with a type of fondness in his stare.

She smiled cheekily, holding up her bow. "I did it."

Keefe chuckled, "Good job, love."

Shrugging off the blush on her cheeks, she grabbed another arrow. Practicing the stance Keefe explained to her, she aimed another one. This time, it was different. Sophie could feel the stare at her back, and it pressured her. Letting go of the string this time resulted in another arrow hitting the same bush as before.

"What was that?" He called out.

"You're staring, it's intimidating when you do that." Sophie admitted.

"I'm sorry." he said, leaning against a tree. "Looking at someone pretty is a habit of mine."

"Hmm." Sophie shot another arrow, and this time, it hit the bullseye. She grinned at him, "I guess I'll have to stare at you more often, then."

♡⇐ Ｓｏｋｅｅｆｅ Ｌｏｖｅ ⇒♡

a/n: call me crazy, but i think they like each other