I tossed the bow to the ground unceremoniously and bent back down to pick up two axes. “For those of you with an ax to grind”—I held for the guaranteed forced laughter—“you’ll have to wait just a moment while we go over the ground rules. I know it’s obvious, but safety is the most important thing when using sharp objects.”
I threw an ax and it hit the bull’s-eye to everyone’s surprise. They clapped and whooped. It was probably my coolest introduction ever, but I wasn’t focused on that.
“Oh my god, I think I’m having a sexual awakening,” a girl with raven-black hair whispered. I almost laughed, but I was trying to keep my shit together.
I held up my second ax and touched the tip, just hard enough not to break the skin. “You can throw two-handed or one-handed. Remember, these are sharp, so when someone else is throwing, everyone is required to stay back and away from the throwee, cool? As you can see, we have several solid targets for you to get out a little bit of aggression.” I smiled, moving to another target away from the campers. “So, just imagine the anger you’ve felt over work problems, friend drama, or that shitty breakup that took you years to get over—”
I usually recommended taking your time, taking a breath, and focusing on the release because it didn’t take too much force, but not today. Using a two-handed hold and throwing every ounce of my weight behind the action, I grunted like a tennis player, hitting the target hard enough that it would have knocked it down if not for the stellar craftsmanship.
“And take it out on the board.”
Genuine claps and gasps emitted over the second bull’s-eye I’d landed, as well as some semi-terrified gazes, specifically from men in the group. The one person whose reaction I didn’t see I avoided on purpose, even though I wanted to look at him. I hated wanting to look at him. This too-good-looking man had no business here.
I made my way to the targets and pulled both axes. I walked back then put them in their designated boxes. I went over the remaining activities, going through the motions and running through my usual spiel. I might have blacked out because as soon as I started, it was over and Bobby looked none the wiser.
Twenty minutes later, I was calmer, and everyone was in full swing. There was laughter over failed throws and whoops over objects that just hit the boards, none of which were close to bull’s-eyes yet. I’d been there before, and I was cheering for them all the same.
I was able to avoid Jamie as he practiced archery, but he came over to my zone seemingly without realizing until it was too late. He looked like he wanted to turn tail and run the other direction, but his friend didn’t notice.
A freckled man offered his hand to me. “Hi, I’m Ren.”
I nodded as I returned his handshake with the same level of intensity. He looked slightly mortified at his formality, but I brushed it off and turned to the true offender.
“And this is James.”
I stood there with my lips half open.James. How did he sound both timid and pretentious at the same time? Ren was practically bouncing whileJameslooked like he’d seen a ghost.
That was somewhat accurate.
“You’re really skilled at this,” Ren said, unaware of the drama unfolding.
“I’m just having a good day.” Would seeing someone you never thought you’d see again constitute a good day? I wasn’t sure. I put on my camp counselor smile. “Thank you though. If you two would like to take the open targets…”
They both did as they were told and picked up an ax.
“So this isn’t so much about strength as it is about focus and form. A little bit of advice: I like to take a breath before I throw because it calms me and helps me focus, but to each their own. Ren, if you’d like to go first.” I pointed at his target.
He threw his ax, and it made it to the target, but the handle made contact, and it fell to the ground.
“Great job. You were barely off. Maybe try releasing the handle a little higher in the arc next time.” I went through the motionwithout an ax, and Ren followed me through the action. “There’s a lot of trial and error involved.”
He threw again and it caught wood right outside of the target. “I hit it.”
He jumped up and down as Jamie clapped. Ren looked to me for a response, and I gave him a thumbs-up.
“Hey, Autumn,” Kell-i asked from behind me. “Can you show me the form again?”
“Be right back,” I told them, relieved to be pulled away so I could catch my breath. “You might want to use two hands, Kell-i,” I told her as she demonstrated her original form. “It has nothing to do with power but helps you straighten your body correctly.”
“Are you gonna go?” I heard Ren ask Jamie. He was probably worried about needing my go-ahead, but I didn’t turn around.
I heard him skim the target, and it landed on the ground. Kell-i threw her ax and hit the farthest circle of the target. I gave her a high five before turning back to the men. “Try it with two hands, James. You saw how close I got to the target.”
Jamie placed both hands on the ax and pulled back, aiming and practicing a swing. I turned, waiting for him to throw, but he seemed to notice me out of the corner of his eye, because not only did he miss the target by a mile but he threw it so hard that it left the vicinity of the ax range and landed farther away than I’d ever seen.
Right into the lake.
Ren burst into laughter, garnering the attention of several campers who missed what had happened, but without explanation, their curiosity abated, and they went back to what they were doing.
