𝐆𝐎𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐑, x.t.

𝐨𝐧𝐞. family troubles

CHAPTER ONE — " hey, stranger "

XAVIER EXHALED, releasing the bow string from his fingers, the arrow flying towards the target just thirty feet in front of him. He sighed as it hit the black ring, just a few inches away from the bullseye when Lillith cleared her throat. Xavier quickly turned his head, seeing the girl walking towards him, making him smile.

"Hey, stranger." Xavier's eyes followed her as she went to take a seat on the grass by his arrows and holster, watching him as he shot arrows towards the target.

"What are you doing out here? Nothing better to do?" Lillith shrugged, leaning back on her hands as her feet crossed in front of her, right over left.

"Saw you out here by yourself from my room, thought I'd come and keep you company. Didn't think it was the greatest idea but I still came down here. If you prefer the quiet, I can leave." Lilith had her headphones around her neck, the song quietly playing as she and Xavier spoke, not really needing them on to block out the noise in her head. For some super odd reason she couldn't fathom, the voices disappeared when she spoke to Xavier. It was weird. The Sorin girl smiled sweetly, her nose crinkling as Xavier looked at her, realizing that her freckles were much more prominent in the light of the afternoon sun.

"No, you can stay."

"How long have you done archery?" Xavier grabbed another arrow from the holster, going back to his place where he stood, his left side of his body facing the target. He took a deep breath as he held his left arm straight out, his right hand coming up to grab the bow string with his pointer and middle finger, taking another deep breath as he let it go, hitting the bullseye.

"About four years. I started to teach myself when I realized I had too much time on my hands. While my dad was out being famous, I was at home doing this. My grandmother had bought me my first set of arrows and gave me my fathers old bow from when he was young. He saw me shoot once, and told me I should stop because of how bad I was. It had only been about a week since I started and since then, I kept trying to get better." Xavier sighed as he turned to face Lillith, her brows furrowed in pity, which Xavier could tell she was trying to hide, the boy forcing a lopsided smile, pushing his hair out of his face. He didn't want to be pitied, especially by Lillith. That was the last thing he wanted.

"Well, if it means anything, I think you're pretty good." The Thorpe boy nodded his head, a grin on his face as he looked down at the seated girl in front of him.

"Thanks." Lilith nodded her head, telling him of course as he grabbed another arrow. "Do you know how to?" The girl looked at the boy as he motioned to her with the bow and arrow, scoffing as she shook her head, waving her hand as a quick no, making Xavier smirk. "Come on, it's not too hard. Here, I'll teach you." The boy placed his bow and arrow on the grass, walking over to Lillith, offering her a hand to stand up. "Please?" The girl rolled her eyes with a heart melting grin, which made Xavier's stomach feel all funny, like it was doing front flips. The Sorin girl placed her hand in his, letting the curly haired boy to pull her up from her spot on the grass and on to her feet. She quickly wiped her uniform off with both hands, smoothing her skirt out as Xavier grabbed the bow and arrow.

"I've never done this before. What if I hit someone?" The tall brunette chuckled, shaking his head and assuring her that she wouldn't hit anyone because there was no one around to hit. "But you're here, what if I somehow manage to shoot you? I manage to do the dumbest stuff sometimes. It's possible." Xavier noticed the girl's sudden panic, thinking quickly, he dropped the bow and arrow, grabbing the headphones from around her neck and placed them on her ears. The music flower through her head, her eyes shutting as she took a deep breath, almost completely calming down. The two stayed like that for a few minutes, Xavier's hands on Lillith's headphones as she took breaths.

"You okay?" The girl nodded her head, as Xavier sighed in relief, the girl thanking him.

"I panic a lot over little things. Sorry." Xavier shook his head, smiling at the shorter girl in front of him.

"We all do. It's a natural thing. Don't apologize for it. If you don't want to shoot the arrow, that's fine. I shouldn't have asked more than once when you didn't want to the first time. It's my fault. I'm sorry I pushed." Lillith couldn't help but feel her cheeks heat up, the blood rushing towards them as he apologized to her. She had never felt anything like this before so she didn't know what was happening, especially since she was feeling it all too quickly. The Sorin girl didn't know why she wanted to be near him, or why she took notice of the little things he did when they spoke, but she did. And it was scary.

"It's okay. It's not your fault."