bows and magnolias • wheebyul

an archer and an earpiece

  .❀。• *₊°。 ❀°。

When a person smoked cigarettes for a certain amount of time, the way they held anything would mimic the way they smoked; the pen, the straw, the whatever– placed between their middle and index finger in a certain angle, the tip facing their mouth.

That was how Byulyi held an arrow. Gentle, as if it wasn't a weapon but a mere branch. As if she wasn't going to lock it into her bow and fire it away.

The new set of arrows in her hands felt heavier compared to other batches she got from Hyejin, her supplier, but there was no doubt she'd continue this obscure habit of hers. Not like she ever smoked, though a lot of people around her did, but there was something endearing about this way of holding; telling this object that you simply can't leave it behind even if your life depended on it.

"Do you not like them?" Hyejin said, cutting off whatever fantasy Byulyi dreamed of at the moment. It was enough to bring her hazy mind back into the empty garage. "Is it the hot pink?" she asked, referring to the hot pink rim around the arrows to indicate their function: electrical shocks.

"What? No, I like them." She tucked the arrows into her bag, designed to look sporty more than it was deadly. "A bit heavy, but I'm guessing that's what happens if they have little tasers in them."

Hyejin's body language already got ready for a rebuttal when Byulyi squeezed in the last sentence. So when she talked soft, it came off as passive aggressive instead. "I tried my best," she said, noticing the slight worry in Byulyi's eyes. No archer liked close combat even against an ex-mechanic.

Byulyi nodded, knowing she had no expertise to judge such things. Besides, Hyejin was the only one making such arrows at request. Go to any other sane person and they would rat her out to the police in an instant.

Amazing how Hyejin hadn't lost her mind with how many shady underground clients she had.

"Thanks again, Hyejin," she said, taking her bag to her shoulder to head out.

"No problem." By the time Byulyi reached the door, Hyejin had another phone call going on– the woman was too busy for her own good. She swung the metal door and squeezed herself out. When the door was three meters and she was barely half of it, this task was more daunting than you'd think.

One would even say it's harder than running a solo freelance business that is most certainly illegal.

Admittedly there were many complications in her work, but it was simple in her mind. Growing up in this pristine and rich family, Byulyi had picked up archery at early childhood. So when their family business went south, it was only basic math for her to ditch her inheritance and go underground as an archer. People liked unique talents in this line of work.

Maybe not so simple, she thought. Especially when she didn't have a client for a week straight.  She picked her focus up to the road so she could navigate herself to her apartment. There was a large group of people up ahead and she didn't want to stick out more than she already did with her gigantic bag that was taller than herself.

Lucky for her, she only bumped into someone once. It was a boy, dressed in loose black clothing with a cap and a mask (this was standard uniform for those who were a tad bit shady to be seen in public), but any other depressed teen had similar clothing so she decided to drop it. What was she going to do about it anyways? The boy was lost amongst the people.

She quickened her pace and kicked her apartment door without intending, her paranoia still present in her brain. The feeling of being followed was like a dark succubus that sat on her shoulders, but no matter how much she looked, there was no sign of a follower. Only when she locked the flat's door did she feel a little bit better.