by Jill Penrod
Courting the Clearwaters
A Boys of Summer Book
Volume 1
By Jill Penrod
Copyright 2013 Jill Penrod
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 1
“I hope you don’t mind coming early,” Seth said as he turned onto the highway. “ I know it’s fun to caravan with the rest, but Ben really needed help setting up, and you and I are the only two done with classes by ten on Friday.”
“Seth, you’ve apologized five times. Do I usually get angry when plans change?” Shawn asked, grinning.
“No.” Seth laughed. “Sorry. I just want you to enjoy this weekend.”
“I will enjoy this weekend. I promise. How could I not? The beach, the sun, you and Alex asking to sing crazy songs…”
“I suppose Alex and I do like to have fun.”
Shawn chuckled and sank back into the car seat. He’d been looking forward to this retreat all week. Although he’d only known Seth and been part of the church group for a couple weeks, it had been a life-changing couple weeks. He’d heard of God and gone to church a time or two in his youth, but when Seth had told him about Jesus, the words had resonated with him. Recently he’d lost himself, and he knew it, and the idea that Jesus wanted to find and rescue him—well, the idea felt too good to be true.
But, he was a little nervous about this trip, too. For years he’d spent most of his time alone, working and studying. Being surrounded by people wasn’t easy, but for the next two days he had no choice but to be with them. Worse, all of them seemed to know things about God and the Bible he didn’t. They were never mean about it, but sometimes he just felt hopelessly lost in all of it.
“You don’t need to be nervous,” Seth asked.
“What makes you think I’m nervous?”
“You’ve twisted our map into a thick rope.”
“Sorry,” Shawn said, smoothing the map in his lap. “I’ve barely met these people. I’m not always so good in a group.”
Seth nodded. He was one of the most extroverted people Shawn had ever met, so he doubted Seth really understood, but he couldn’t be sure. Although he’d known Seth longer than anyone else this weekend, they’d still only met about three weeks ago. They had a long way to go to really know each other.
“Tell me about that girl who took our registration forms on Wednesday,” he said, looking out the window and not meeting Seth’s gaze. The girl had smiled and greeted him warmly when they’d met, and in the chaos of the registration line, he’d not gotten to say more than hello. That warm smile had occupied his mind for two days now.
“Jenny Clearwater?” Seth said, chuckling. “I’m not sure you want to fall for that one, my friend.”
“Why not?” Shawn asked, a little irritated by his friend’s patronizing smile.
“She doesn’t date. She and her family have decided to try courtship.”
“Courtship?” Shawn ran a hand over his short hair. “And that means--?”
“Hard to explain. It takes physical purity between a girl and a guy a step farther. Emotional purity, I guess you could say. I’m still not sure how I feel about it. I can give you an article that explains it. A lot of Christians are into it.”
“Courtship. I will never learn all the customs and lingo of the Christians.”
“You will,” Seth said with certainty. “Remember, God had his hands on you long before you met me and then accepted Him.”
“I suppose. What about the girl who was with Jenny?”
“Julie Lopez,” Seth said. “Where you see Jenny, you see Julie. It’s been that way forever.”
“Why hadn’t I seen them before Wednesday?”
“Their families vacation together in the Bahamas,” Seth said, rolling his eyes. “They do every spring.”
“Are they snobs?” Shawn asked, unsure of Seth’s tone.
“Oh, no, no. Not at all. I’ve known these two since we were all in the nursery together, you know? I tease them a lot. No, their families are loaded, but they’re never big-headed. Great Christian ladies. Both of them.”
“Jenny’s really pretty,” Shawn said absently.
“I suppose. I can’t think of her that way. She’s like a sister. I have an article in my Bible about courtship if you want it.”
“Figures,” Shawn said, laughing. Seth’s Bible was a wreck. Papers filled it, breaking the binding and falling out every time he opened it. He liked to keep every note he took, and he wasn’t much for organization.
“I don’t know,” Shawn said. “Sounds a little radical to me. I’m having enough trouble with the traditional stuff. Do Jenny and Julie go to South, too?”
“Jenny studies Religion, and Julie is Elementary Education,” he answered, nodding.
They drove in comfortable silence a while longer, and then Shawn leaned down and picked up the Bible, leafing through until he came to the article Seth had mentioned. He read it slowly, and then he read it again, not sure what he thought about it. He shuddered at the thought of approaching a girl’s parents, especially since he had no father to join him. It sounded old fashioned, almost like arranged marriages, and just reading about it made him uncomfortable.
“It’s different,” Seth said as Shawn tucked the page back in the Bible. “Like I said, I’m not sure what I think about it. But, Jenny’s parents are pretty discerning. They don’t jump into anything without giving it thought and prayer.”
Shawn nodded. Suddenly he felt more nervous. If he knew nothing whatsoever about this, how many more things did he know nothing about? What if they found him so different they wouldn’t want him here at all?
Ben’s truck was already at the hotel, and for two hours they set up sound equipment and chairs. Ben was about fifty, although he didn’t look it, and he was strong, lifting things Seth couldn’t. Shawn knew he was strong himself, putting himself through school working construction every summer. To stay in shape off season he went to the campus gym almost daily, and although this summer he’d been promised a job in the computer lab, the gym was a habit he’d continued. It was nice to know he was still strong enough to be useful.
Seth was tall and almost painfully thin. His hair was long, below his shoulders, usually tied neatly at the nape of his neck. Ben teased him about getting it cut, but Seth pointed out his job was to speak Spanish over the phone, so nobody ever saw him. Ben just rolled his eyes. Although Seth wasn’t terribly strong, he kept all three of them laughing, and he helped Shawn relax. The youth leader intimidated him a bit, but after listening to him and Seth banter and tease all afternoon, he realized the man was just a normal man. A normal man who loved college students and wanted them to know God better. So, maybe normal wasn’t the right word, Shawn thought, but he was down to earth and no longer intimidating.
They finished an hour before the group was supposed to arrive, and Ben and Seth decided to swim in the hotel pool. Shawn opted out, wanting just to shower, and his roommates left the room with towels in hand. When they were gone he took off his sweaty shirt and dug in his pack for his shampoo, opening the curtain so he could see. The room was nice, eight floors up, and he glanced down to see the beach. Early in the season, the water was cool, and the sand was bare of touri
sts.
With the room so bright, Shawn pulled out his clothes, all T-shirts and cutoff shorts, and put them in drawers so the cotton shirts wouldn’t wrinkle. He knew he didn’t dress fancy in the summer, a kickback from all the construction work, but at least he could show up unwrinkled. He was surprised at how worried he was about the weekend, and he took a deep breath and hoped this whole event wasn’t a really bad idea.
When the door opened, Shawn spun around and grabbed a shirt, not expecting Seth to return. His friend glanced at the scars across Shawn’s shoulder and raised an eyebrow, and Shawn slipped the shirt over his head and looked away.
“Forget something?” he asked, hoping Seth would just let it go and return to the pool.
“My shades,” Seth said, looking uncomfortable. He grabbed his sunglasses off the TV and slipped them onto his head. “You were in a fire?”
“A long time ago,” Shawn said. “Have a good swim.”
Seth shook his head a little and left, and Shawn sat on the bed, suddenly feeling drained. He took off his shirt again and looked in the mirror, wondering what Seth thought when he saw it. Nobody but the hospital personnel had ever seen the marks left by the fire. Even Seth hadn’t seen the worst of it; not only did the scars run from his right nipple over his shoulder, but they covered sixty percent of his back as well.
He stared at the grisly disfigurement for a full minute before getting into the shower. He wished he could take back the past few minutes. He desperately did not want these people—or any people—to know what he had experienced. There would be questions and looks of pity and disgust. He’d seen enough of that in the hospital to last a lifetime. He didn’t want to explain it all and go back there again. Life had just become new to him, and he wanted to stay here in the newness and not think about old times.
Why didn’t you protect me from that, God? he asked as he rubbed soap over the rough skin. I haven’t had a friend like him in a long time, and this could ruin it all. I don’t think I could handle the disappointment of going back to my old life now that I’ve tasted something new. I hope that isn’t what you have planned for me.
Shawn made sure he wasn’t in the room when his roommates returned. Instead, he walked on the beach, staying within sight of the hotel so he could see the others when they arrived. The surf was loud in his ears, the waves rough, and he imagined a storm had hit these waters somewhere off the shore, and choppy water and a lot of loose seaweed were the only reminders. The beach smelled strongly of salt and fish, and he took a deep breath, loving the smell.
As a child he’d come here a lot, and he missed it. He hadn’t had time to go anywhere, really, since his dad had died. He’d certainly never gone swimming. For a moment he wondered how he’d do it this weekend, what they’d say when he stayed dressed, if he should just avoid the pool altogether. He’d blown it once, but he didn’t plan to repeat that. He didn’t want to be different, and he wondered once more if coming on this trip was a good idea.
The church group was hard to miss, six cars with horns blowing and Christian rock music blaring from open windows. He had to laugh at them, a bunch of college students drained from too much schoolwork and ready to relax for a weekend. He jogged up the beach and greeted them, and Alex, the most boisterous of the group, hugged him and lifted him off the ground. His six-foot frame had no trouble lifting Shawn’s five-nine. As he set him down, Seth walked out of the hotel, his long hair still dripping. Shawn didn’t meet his gaze.
“Man, you missed a good trip,” Alex said.
“Hey, we were working,” Shawn said, laughing. “When we sing those wild songs of yours tonight, you’ll thank us.”
“We’d have been here earlier, but Miss Lopez doesn’t know how to read a map,” Tom said, playfully rolling his eyes. He was Alex’s smaller, younger brother. “She has no trouble finding her way through the Bahamas, but a trip to the beach we take four times a year had her stumped.”
“Play nice,” Jenny said, wrapping her arm protectively around her petite friend.
“Jenny, Julie, I’d like to introduce you to Shawn Carpenter. He’s a Computer Science major at South,” Seth said, shooting Shawn an odd look.
“Pleased to meet you, Shawn,” Jenny said. She had lovely dark eyes and dark hair, and her smile was a knockout. “I’m glad you’re here this weekend; it’s a great way to get to know everybody. So, how did you meet Seth? I didn’t know he could even turn a computer on.”
“Hey,” Seth laughed.
“I help a grad student with one of the beginning computer classes,” Shawn said. “Were you writing that little bit of code from the third assignment?”
“I was trying,” Seth said, running his hand over his long, fine hair. “I tried to act like I had some idea what I was doing and uninstalled something very important, although I couldn’t tell you what. Shawn spent a good hour getting everything running again.”
“So Seth took me out for coffee. I think he felt bad.” Shawn smiled at Seth, who laughed.
“I guess you could say that. I’ve never been so embarrassed in my life. Shawn was a trooper, though. Never once complained.”
“Seth,” Julie scolded, grinning. She was as pretty as Jenny, and Shawn was almost jealous of the comfort level the trio shared. “So, Shawn, was it the free coffee or Seth’s winning personality that made you befriend him?”
“Well, it was good coffee,” Shawn said, laughing.
“So, did your trip up here go all right?” Julie asked.
“Fine. No problems at all. The rooms are great, by the way. We’re on the eighth floor—great views,” Shawn said.
“What did you do with Ben?” Tom asked.
“He took a swim. He’ll be down for dinner. I peeked at our menu this weekend, and it looks great.”
“They always treat us well here,” Julie said, looking at Alex. “And they’ll continue to do so, if we can behave.”
“I always behave,” Alex said, looking innocent and hurt and then breaking into a grin. “I want to shower before dinner.”
The group checked in, and Mandy and Bob asked him to show them the sound equipment so they could prepare for the night’s session. When Shawn returned to the lobby, Seth met him, his brow furrowed.
“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” he said, wearing the same look all the hospital staff had worn. Shawn forced a smile and willed his feet to remain still.
“Seth, the scars are ancient. Don’t worry about it. We’re here to enjoy ourselves.”
Shawn smiled, trying to make the entire thing seem as light and silly as possible. Apparently it worked, or Seth just decided to play along, because he smiled his most child-like smile and laughed. When he smiled like that, he looked like he was about ten years old, and the face looked strange on someone over six feet tall.
“Sorry. Don’t mean to obsess. I saw Tom and Alex. They’re rooming next door, along with Mark and Noah. We may not sleep tonight.”
“I had three tests this week and then lugged around sound equipment this afternoon,” Shawn said. “I’ll sleep.”
“You should have come to the pool. Really works out the muscles.”
“I’m hungry. Let’s be the first in line in the dining room.”
“Done,” Seth said, leading the way. “I like your style, buddy.”
Dinner was excellent, and afterward they moved to the large conference room for the evening’s meeting. He and Seth took seats near the back, and he watched Jenny and Julie pass them, along with a large group of girls. They moved to the front of the room and laughed as they took a whole row. Jenny was pretty, her hair left loose, wearing a brightly colored tank top and jean shorts. She wasn’t as dark as Julie, a petite girl with short hair and lovely Hispanic features, but she was darker than Shawn.
Ben moved to the front of the room to call order. This was actually two college youth groups, so there were nearly two hundred of them, all sitting in padd
ed folding chairs waiting to hear God’s Word. Two months ago Shawn hadn’t even been aware meetings like this existed, and in his wildest dreams he didn’t think he’d ever attend one. It amazed him how quickly one little outing for coffee had changed his whole life.
Ben started the meeting with prayer, and then Bob and Mandy, a married couple, pulled out guitars and led them through some songs. They gave the group a chance to choose songs, and Alex chose a couple with wild hand motions. The other college group didn’t know the songs, so Alex and Seth went to the front to lead them. When they finally finished and sat down, everyone was laughing and breathless, and although Shawn knew they looked like kids at camp and not college students, he was completely enjoying himself.
Ben then gave a message, and Shawn opened his Bible—a gift from Seth—and took careful notes. Being so new to Christianity, he desperately wanted to know everything he could about God. Shawn wondered if he would ever catch up and know as much as anyone here. He struggled to find passages in the Bible, whereas everyone else seemed to know how to find it all, and he took a deep breath and reminded himself if God loved him enough to save him, he loved him enough to be patient as he learned.
Ben talked of gifts and purposes and the importance of living for God in his whole life, not just on Sunday and Wednesday, and Shawn thought about that some. He liked the idea that he had some purpose. For years now life had been a blur of work and school and nothing else, nothing satisfying. Some days he struggled just to get out of bed, never feeling what he did had value. Now Ben stood before him and assured him there was indeed purpose in his life, and he felt some very old tension slip away as he hoped this was true.
After Ben spoke, a group of guys went to the front to get ready for a skit, and Shawn watched Jenny smile and chat with the people around them, her eyes sparkling with a friendliness unlike any he’d ever seen.
“You know,” Shawn whispered to Seth, “Jenny Clearwater really is beautiful. I’m surprised you can’t see it.”
Seth chuckled, digging into his Bible and pulling out the rumpled article on courtship. He smiled slyly as he pressed it into Shawn’s hand.
“More power to you,” he said.
Shawn couldn’t sleep, and he read through the article for the fourth time, sitting in the small lobby of the beach high-rise. At first reading he’d been fairly shocked, but now that he’d had some time to think about it, he could see the idea behind it. Instead of dating and getting thirty broken hearts before finally marrying, this was a way to put the choice of a mate into the hands of God and one’s parents. A man who felt he wanted to court a girl first approached his parents, and if they agreed with the match, he approached the girl’s father. If he got the blessing of those parents, he then asked for the girl’s permission to convince her he was a strong Christian man. After that, they spent time together in public or in private with a nearby chaperon. At some later point they were allowed emotional commitment and marriage.
To Shawn, it sounded fairly cold and ordered, but he saw how it could appeal to strong Christian families. Not belonging to one of these, and being a new Christian himself, he also thought it was a way to keep people like him away from the Jenny Clearwaters in the world.
He wadded up the article and tossed it. As much as he loved being a Christian, he often felt like he’d gotten to a movie halfway through. He didn’t know even the most basic Bible stories, and he had trouble with the jargon of his new friends. They all treated him well, which kept him from getting too frustrated, but things like this courtship made him feel small and insignificant. He’d felt too much of that in his life.
“Okay, God,” he said quietly. “Ben said tonight that every part of the body has a purpose. Help me know what that means for me. You saved me, so you must want me for something. Let me know—I’m willing to do anything. I just don’t see too many gifts yet.”
He glanced down at the balled article in the garbage, thought about Jenny’s purely joyful smile when he’d said he was coming on the retreat, and decided he needed to get back to bed. If he was going to enjoy the beach, he needed to sleep. He pulled the page out of the can and moved toward the elevator, thinking Seth would be laughing if he saw him right now, clinging to this strange idea that the lovely Jenny Clearwater would ever have eyes for him. And how could he ever struggle through this courtship idea if she did?