On the top floor there are spare combat rooms for practice and training, each fully equipped and available all day. This is usually where I spend most of my free time but I'm normally alone so I'm not used to talking when I'm up here. Chloe however is very conversational and hasn't stopped speaking since we got in the lift.
'I used to come up here a lot' Chloe narrated, 'it's eerily quiet but it helped me think'
'I come up here to think sometimes but mostly just to stay active or to evade boredom' I shrugged.
'Yeah, I get that' Chloe nodded slowly.
'Let's use this room, it has a great archery set' I opened the door and entered but Chloe was hesitant.
'I'm not very good at archery or swords' Chloe spoke worriedly.
'So you're just not good with pointy things' I sardonically assumed. 'Don't worry, I'll teach you'
'I can throw a knife into the dead centre of a target from up to 6 metres away; I can handle pointy things' Chloe smugly smiled. In that moment, I remembered the ease 96 used to throw a knife into the dead centre of a target as well.
'Wow, that's actually impressive' I nodded in approval.
'I know' she said very cocksure. 'You're getting better with the complimenting, Max'
I rolled my eyes and walked towards the bow and quiver, 'let's start with archery then'
'I feel like I don't have anything to teach you though' Chloe said feeling reserved.
'Well, I'm rubbish with throwing knives' I admitted.
'Don't worry, I'll teach you' she felt self-assured as she mocked what I previously said.
I handed Chloe the bow and quiver, 'let's see what you can do first'
Chloe took a deep breath and walked towards the target practice area, while inelegantly fumbling to get the bow ready. Chloe's eye narrowed as she focused on the target and drew back the arrow but her hands were shaking.
She's not holding the bow right.
She released the tension in the arrow and watched it fly towards the target. It weakly hit the furthest ring from the centre and dropped after a few seconds.
Chloe's cheeks flushed crimson as she turned to face me but I met her with understanding eyes and smiled.
'It actually wasn't that bad' I shrugged.
'It didn't even stay on the board' Chloe moaned, 'I told you I wasn't good!'
'There were only two things wrong with your execution, so I stick to what I said before' I grabbed another archery set, 'it wasn't that bad'
Chloe smiled and then furrowed her eyebrows, 'what two things did I do wrong?'
'You're holding the bow incorrectly and you didn't extend your arms as fully as you could' I explained.
'Oh okay' Chloe sighed, 'so, you can teach me?'
I eyed the target next to hers and extended the string with the arrow in place, breathed and let it fly. The arrow head struck the dead centre of the ring with great force and I let my action answer her question.
'Okay, okay' Chloe rolled her eyes, 'show off'
'A few more sessions and you'll be able to do that with ease' I nodded but she didn't look convinced, 'I promise'
First, I taught her how to set up the bow with the arrow correctly positioned and ensured that the arrow was in line with her neck. Every time she relaxed and it fell below her neck, I would gently push up her elbow and she would roll her eyes.
I moved to stand behind her and closed the distance between us, so our bodies were touching. I could feel her heart beat faster as I placed my arms under hers allowing her arms to relax onto mine. Our breathing patterns became frequent and irregular.
I taught her to angle the arrow by raising the direction the arrow head was projecting at, so it would land in the centre ring.
'You need to aim slightly above where you want the arrow to land because the arrow falls lower the longer it's in the air' I explain.
'Okay' she breathed.
I break away from her body and stand in front of her to observe her stance and hold on the bow.
'Extend your arms a bit more and breathe deeply before you let go of the arrow' I teach.
Chloe extends her arms, building up tension in the string and breathes weakly. I take a step towards her and put my hand on her chest, 'breathe deeper'
Chloe breathes fairly deeply.
I try to soothe her, 'just relax and breathe'
'That's kind of – hard to do when you're touching my chest' Chloe whispers.
Chloe breathes and takes in as much air as her lungs can allow and releases it slowly, almost seductively. The room is silent for a moment and all that can be heard is our hearts thudding rapidly.
'That was good' I said quietly, my voice struggling to sound steady. I stand back and smile, 'now shoot'
Chloe breathes deeply and releases the arrow at an impressive speed; it buries itself into the second ring from the centre. Chloe grins in awe at her shot and I clap proudly at her remarkable improvement. In excitement Chloe ran toward me and hugged me, wrapping her arms around neck tightly. I awkwardly put my arms around her waist but broke the hug after a few seconds not knowing how long an average hug typically lasts.
'I thought the black sector didn't hug' Chloe smirked.
'I believe you hugged me' I smirked, 'and some of us do but mostly no'
'I'm guessing you don't hug much' Chloe assumed.
Was the hug really that bad!?
My cheeks started to flush so I changed the subject, 'we should probably go back to our rooms now. Dinner is in 10 minutes'
'Oh yeah' Chloe realises and put the bow and arrow away. 'Thanks for teaching me how to do all that today'
'You already had it in you, I just helped' I smiled.
I walked Chloe back to the white sector, conversing as we walked and I followed her to the door of her room while telling her about my fight with 96.
'I literally couldn't see anything after he punched me the first time but I just kept going' I proudly nodded, 'it was best two out of three so I won by winning the other two battles'
'Wow' Chloe gasped, 'you're stronger than I thought'
'I just had to prove to myself that I could keep going' I admitted.
'Fighting doesn't prove strength y'know' Chloe mused.
My eyebrows furrowed.
'Anyway, this is my door' Chloe gestured, 'so I'll see you during our next free'
'Yeah, bye' my arms twitched as if to hug her but I just turned and walked to my room.
