Grace Alive: a Christian Romance (8 page)

“Zoe, right?” a man said from behind me. I
turned and gave half a smile. Did I know this guy? “I’m Zach,
Jacob’s friend. I came to church last week with him.”

I didn’t even remember seeing him. He must
have come in after I’d sat down.

“Oh, hi,” I said feeling completely
awkward.

“I just saw you, so I thought I’d say hi. You
know Jacob really likes you.”

Awkward moment. My goodness, can’t this guy
just go away. I really didn’t want to talk about creepy Jacob. I
might explode.

“He…really wants you to know that I think. He
told me that your dad told him that you…well…that you and him are
supposed to court. That’s so awesome! Jacob is really happy!”

My dad said what! I lost all breath in my
body for a second. He told Jacob that God wanted me to court him!
My eyes flashed hotly, and my hands balled into fists.
Seriously!

“God never told me to court Jacob. I’m
not…courting Jacob,” I said through a forced smile.

“Oh, I thought…” Zach stuttered and then lost
his bravado. “Oh, well I’ll go…I better go. I’ll see you tonight,
Zoe.”

That’s right there was church tonight. I let
out an annoyed groan as I watched him go. How could my dad do that
to me! He probably wanted Jacob to pray for me to see the light. My
tranquil feeling now ruined, I stormed toward my car.

***

I slid into the third row that night feeling
extremely angry at my dad still. Mia noticed immediately. Her brown
hair was in waves and a sparkly clip held it to one side. She was
wearing a short pink dress that accented her figure.

“Spill it, Zo,” she said as she pulled me to
a private corner of the church. Tears welled up in my eyes despite
myself. I swiped them away in annoyance.

“Things are just getting out of control. My
dad is trying to pawn me off to Jacob. He told me the other day
that God told him I was to court Jacob. Then Jacob’s creepy friend
told me that my dad told Jacob that I was supposed to court him! I
mean seriously? How could my dad do that to me?” I said through a
sob. Mia looked around and then wrapped me up in a big hug. She
smelt like flowers.

“Zoe, it’s going to be okay. Maybe…it won’t
be so bad to court Jacob. Maybe…you’ll grow to love him,” she said
soothingly.

“Seriously? You’re taking his side? Jacob?
Can you see me kissing that guy?” I jerked my head toward where
Jacob always sat. He wasn’t here yet, which I was happy about.

“Ew. You’re right. That’s just wrong on all
levels. But, what if God did tell your dad that? I’ve never known
Pastor Daniel to ever mishear God.” She blinked at me.

“Please, stop, Mia,” I said close to tears
again. She was right. My dad was never wrong. Ever. So why did I
feel like upchucking at even the thought of Jacob? Shouldn’t I be
attracted to my future husband? I thought of Branson and scolded
myself.
Just get over him, Zoe. This is the way it is. Jacob and
you are meant to be. The Lord spoke to your dad about it.
I
tried to convince myself that this was what I was going to do. We
headed out of our little corner and found our seats as the service
was about to begin. Pastor Mike got everyone all pumped up before
they dismissed the youth and children to their classes.

My dad got up and smiled at us. Smiled! I was
in shock! He began a lesson on prayer. It was a subject my dad
absolutely loved. He expounded on how important it was, and how God
was displeased with us when we let things distract us. I’d let a
lot of things distract me lately. I still prayed, but I kept
thinking about Branson and what I should do about Friday. It was
only a couple days away now. After service, I hovered near Mia as
she bustled her kids around. Tomas nodded to me silently.

Crap. Jacob walked over to me, a sickening
sweet smile stretched across his face. It isn’t even that Jacob is
ugly. Far from it. Some girls actually thought he was
semi-attractive. If you liked that greasy, slicked back look. For
some reason he wanted me, even though a couple girls I knew liked
him. He couldn’t take a hint. He approached me, and I had nowhere
to hide.

“Hi-ya, Zoe-Mcglowy,” he said with a stupid
drawl.

“Hi,” I said with a dead voice. I was not in
the mood for him today.

“So what time do I pick you up for the
movie?”

“Movie?” I asked dumbly. What was he talking
about?

“Oh, your dad told me, Friday me and you were
going to the movies. There’s a new Christian film out I thought we
could catch, and then afterward we could grab a bite to eat. What
time is good for you?”

Never! I wanted to shout. Friday was my date
with Branson! My dad had planned this? What did I do? If I said get
lost he would say something to my dad, and I’d get a huge lecture
about hearing the voice of God. This was going to be really tricky
to get out of. Maybe I could work? I could call my boss and have
him schedule me for Friday night. But, what about Branson? I felt
torn in two. This was a no-win situation. If I said no I would face
my dad, if I said yes I wouldn’t be able to go out with Branson.
And…ugh…I’d be going out with Jacob. What did I do!
Jesus, what
do I do? I can’t win here!
I prayed to myself. Jacob fidgeted.
Oh, I’d waited a long time to answer.

“Will six work for you? The movie starts at
6:15. Then we can go out to Charlie’s afterward.” He was still
waiting for me to say something. I’d have to cancel with Branson
wouldn’t I? I wanted to cry all over again.

“Okay.” That was all I could say right now. I
turned and walked away before I screamed like a three-year-old.
Tears impregnated in my eyes against my will as I slammed out the
door of the church. Mia got a glimpse of my face as she loaded her
kids in her van. I jogged to my car and shoved my key in before she
could come over. I’d driven myself today. I hadn’t wanted to ride
with my parents even if it saved me 50 cents. I was going out with
Jacob. This sucked!

I had to work the next day, and all I could
think was that I had a date with stinky Jacob. It was like having a
date with a drowned rat. Wrong on every level. I helped people find
felt, glue sticks, and beads. One old lady even pinched my cheeks.
My life was sucky. I felt hopelessness spiral through my chest. It
was almost time to go, when the door jingled and sure enough
Branson walked in. His smile lit the room. He had no kids with him
today. He saw me and walked over.

“Hi, Zoe! Still on for tomorrow night?”

Crap! I had forgotten to cancel with him! I
was so wrapped up in my own misery that I let it completely slip my
mind! I must have shown it on my face because his smile turned into
a concerned look.

“Is something wrong? You look like you ate a
lemon. Does my breath stink or something?” He smelt his own breath
then gave me a killer smile. This was going to be so hard to do.
How did I explain this to him? My dad thought I was supposed to
marry this creepy guy who I thought was a snake. Did I tell
him?

“Um, Branson, something came up for Friday. I
completely forgot to call you. I can’t go out with you. Can
we…reschedule?” I asked. I still wanted to go out if only to quench
this strong urge I felt to be with him. I know I shouldn’t feel
that way at all. I should just listen to my dad. Be a good pastor’s
daughter, and obey my dad. After all, he heard God better than I
did.

“Oh, well, how about Saturday? Though I might
have…the twins. I…could call their mom and see if I could work
something out.” He reached in his back pocket for his phone and
started scrolling. “I’ll call her. Hold on.” He walked a few feet
away from me, and I could hear him softly talking to his ex. I
didn’t want to create tension between him and his kids’ moms. What
was I doing? Branson was a dad. He had, had how many girlfriends?
Was he going to try and tempt me into bed with him? The thought
terrified me. After a couple minutes, he walked back over with a
small frown.

“Um, she can’t take the twins Saturday. What
about Sunday? After church Julie picks them up. We could hang out
around one?” he asked. I really, really wanted to be around
him.

“Okay, that would probably work for me.” My
parents went to one of the church members’ houses for lunch. I
sometimes went with them. I could tell them that I wanted some
alone time. I could suffer through my date with Jacob I suppose
knowing that two days later I’d see Branson. He smiled at me and
bought his milk. We must have some killer milk.

Ugh. Date time. I wanted to just wear sweats
on my date with Jacob and not do anything to make myself look good.
But Dad was downstairs, and if I looked like the walking dead he
would notice and be upset. I threw on a pair of nice jeans, a
button down black shirt that made me look a little chubby, and
braided my hair like I was 12. I added a little makeup but not
much. I looked like a hick. Perfect. I came down the stairs just as
Jacob knocked on the door. My dad looked at me, and his eyebrow
rose slightly.

“You’re wearing that, Zoe?”

I simply nodded at him as I answered the door
and let Jacob in. Jacob was wearing a nice suit with his hair
combed back all perfectly. Yuck.

“Ready?” he asked, and I could hear the
excitement in his voice.

“Yeah.” That was all I could bring myself to
say as I went out the door with him. We got into his truck, and we
headed toward the theater. We watched the super cheesy movie, and
Jacob tried the shoulder shrug move on me more than once. Finally I
leaned forward as if the movie was the most interesting thing on
the planet. He tried to brush my hand against his when we were
eating popcorn, but I was fast and moved it out of the bucket
before he could. He sure was trying hard. After the movie ended, he
tried to grab my hand, but I glared at him like he was the devil
himself.

“Sorry, I’m just so excited that we are
finally courting.”

“Who said we were courting?” I said with a
sneer. His eyes widened at my response.

“Your dad. He told me we were courting.”

Dad! I boiled inside as we headed toward the
restaurant. I had to get out of this mess. Charlie’s was packed. We
still squeezed into a back booth. We ordered our food, and Jacob
squeezed my knee under the table. I think I was going to be
sick.

“God told me we were going to be courting
over a year ago. I was just waiting for confirmation. I can’t
believe God told your dad too,” he said, and his eyes danced with
excitement. I wanted to hit my head against the table until this
nightmare was over.

“I still need to pray about this more, Jacob.
I just don’t know.” I pushed my food around on my plate.

“Are you saying Pastor Daniel didn’t hear the
Lord?” There it was again. Guilt! Pressure to perform. Did I just
simply trust that my dad heard God for me?

“I just want to hear God say it to me too,” I
said slowly as if I were talking to a child. I suffered through the
rest of dinner saying as little as possible. Finally, this awful
date was done with. On the way home, Jacob seemed like he was
thinking hard about something. He dropped me off, I mumbled a
goodbye, and practically ran out of the car and into the house.
Thank God that was over! Or was it? I moaned to myself as I hung up
my purse and took my shoes off. Mom saw me come in and smiled.

“How was your date?” she asked with a duster
in one hand. With the way my mom dusted, I don’t think our house
has a speck of dust in it.

“Oh, just great,” I said. Was that too much
sarcasm in my voice? I hoped not.

“Jacob’s a nice boy. He’ll make a fine
husband for you, Zoe. He’s got a good job, loves the Lord, and
serves faithfully in his house.”

I kept my face straight and simply nodded. If
I said something I would probably start screaming, crying, or
hysterically laughing, or all three at the same time. My mom kept
up her dusting while I headed toward my room to get ready for
bed.

It was coaxing on 10:30 when I finally cozied
up in my bed with my Bible. I flipped it open and just started
reading a random spot.
1
John 4:7-8 Dear friends, let us
love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has
been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know
God, because God is love.
I reread the verse again and leaned
back against my headboard. I was supposed to love Jacob. If I
didn’t love I didn’t know God. I felt a prick. Did I have to love
Jacob like that though? Couldn’t I just love him as a brother in
Christ? I let out a long sigh and kept reading for a few more
minutes. My eyes started closing on their own, so I soon closed my
Bible and set it on my nightstand. I shut off my lamp and closed my
eyes. I could figure everything out tomorrow.

***

I groggily woke up to the sound of my phone
dinging from a text. I rolled over and slapped at my phone in
annoyance. Who the heck texted at 8:30 in the morning? I didn’t
work until later. That’s why God invented sleep. I managed to peek
one eyelid open, and instantly I brightened. It was from
Branson.

Morning, want coffee?
Weren’t we going
out for lunch tomorrow? I puffed out a breath and put my hand up to
catch it. Nasty. My breath was going to kill someone.

Sure, what time?
I texted him back,
making my body get out of bed. We’d been chatting on Facebook and
texting a lot since our first coffee date.

Now?
he texted. Was this guy serious?
I did a quick glance in the mirror. I looked like…well…never mind
you don’t want to know how I looked.

I look like something the cat dragged in.
Give me 20 minutes. lol,
I texted him. I climbed out of bed,
dragged some clothes from my drawer, and ran toward the shower. I
had 20 minutes to not look like Frankenstein. Was it possible? I
got in the shower and quickly washed up. I was out of the shower in
five minutes, dried off, and got dressed. Now for my hair. What did
I do with it? I had roughly fifteen minutes to make it look
half-way decent. I pulled out my hair drier and went to work. After
it was mostly dry, I applied my makeup as quickly as possible
without smudging everything. Wow. Not too shabby for 20 minutes. I
grinned at myself and jogged back toward my bedroom. I grabbed my
purse and did one more glance in the mirror before heading toward
the door.