“What do you mean?”
“Ellie, let me tell you what really happened. Adam Zuckerman was a junior who used to work at the Pet Palace. But his dad got a job with Boeing, and they moved to Seattle . . . a year ago last June! That’s when I was hired to take his place. You can ask Mr. Pruitt. He’ll verify all that.”
Ellie didn’t look convinced. “Well, if that’s true, why in the world would she make up such a wild story like that?”
“I’ve gotta tell you about Megan Harris. I don’t like badmouthing anyone, but you need to know this. Let’s just say that she tried really hard to get me to, um . . . to go out with her about a year ago when I first started working there. But I wasn’t interested in her at all because I signed a pledge at church to date only other Christians. Besides, she’s got a pretty nasty reputation around school, if you know what I mean. But she kept hitting on me and doing everything she could to change my mind. She wouldn’t take no for an answer! So, I finally had to sort of—you know—put her in her place to get her to stop. I thought she was over it, but I guess she’s had it in for me ever since.”
“But what about Chris Miller?” Ellie demanded suspiciously.
“I wouldn’t worry too much about Chris.”
“Why not?”
“Because he’s Megan’s current boyfriend.”
“Her boyfriend?”
“Yeah, you can ask anyone. And they’ll tell you he’d do just about anything she asked him to do. He’s really not much different than she is, you know.” Caleb paused to give Ellie time to process everything. Then he gave her a sideways look across the table. “You know the kind of person he is. I heard he was hitting on you the first day of school.”
“Oh, that!” Ellie rolled her eyes and held up her fingers just inches apart from each other. “I came this close to slapping him.”
He wished he could have been there to see her publicly shame the beast.
“He’s so disgusting,” she added.
Caleb decided not to mention how Chris had been treating him lately. There was no point in that. “You know what I think? I think Megan fabricated that whole story just to get back at me for turning her down. And she used you to do it. And she must have heard that Chris hit on you. I’ll bet she blackmailed him into going along with her lie.”
Ellie was quiet for a minute. “Well, that does all seem to fit, I guess.” Then she presented her last piece of evidence. “But tell me this, if none of that is true, then why didn’t you deny it when I first accused you? Why did you say you didn’t want me to find out about it if it’s all just a big lie? Hmm?”
All this time Caleb thought she was mad at him for giving up his job, when actually it was because she thought he’d lied to Mr. Pruitt and gotten Adam fired. No wonder she was so angry. But now he was backed into a corner. He could see no way around revealing what he had wanted to keep secret. It was time to tell her everything.
“I guess I’d better start from the beginning.” He took a deep breath. “Ever since you told me you were looking for a job, I’ve been praying that God would provide one for you. Then I came across a verse in the Bible that says if we have two coats, we’re to give one to somebody who doesn’t have any. I figured I had two jobs, one at the Pet Palace, and one mowing lawns. And you didn’t have any. So I prayed about what to do. I was reminded of a movie I saw once where a man gave his horse to a family in need. After that, God supplied another horse for him. So I decided to give up my job at the Pet Palace and go back to mowing lawns.”
He smiled wryly. “Of course, I could have given you the mowing job, but I didn’t think you’d appreciate that as much.”
Ellie tried unsuccessfully to stifle a laugh.
“I tried to keep it a secret,” he continued. “That’s why I had B.J. tell you about the job instead of me. I didn’t want you to misunderstand my intentions.”
She sat quietly and avoided his eyes. Instead she stared at the table, fidgeting with her glass of water. “I . . . I don’t know what to say.” She sounded subdued and humbled. “I can’t believe you did that for me. Giving up your job for someone you hardly know. Someone who hasn’t been . . . .who hasn’t been very nice to you at all.”
Her eyes filled with tears, and he suddenly felt badly for her.
“Ellie, I never expected anything like this to happen. I’m awfully sorry for the pain I’ve caused you!”
She looked up at him in amazement and shook her head sadly. “Caleb, you shouldn’t be apologizing to me. I’m the one who should be apologizing to you! I never should have doubted you in the first place. It’s just that, well . . . I’ve never really had a good reason to trust anyone before.” She paused and wiped her eyes with the napkin on the table. “I’m sorry for getting so angry with you.”
An awkward silence filled the void until she looked straight into his face and pleaded, “Can you forgive me for even thinking that you could do such a terrible thing?”
Caleb exhaled slowly and smiled. “Sure! No problem.” He reached across the table and put his hand on hers. She stiffened at his touch, but then relaxed and let his hand remain on hers. “Ellie, do you remember when I told you that I was the nicest kid in school?”
She nodded.
He paused for effect, and then gave her one of his patented mischievous grins. “Well, do you believe me now?”
The pent-up tension between them vanished, and Ellie burst into laughter. “I’ll take your word on that!”
Several people came into the diner and took a nearby booth, distracting Caleb for a moment. Some of the dinner crowd was arriving a little early. Glancing at his phone, he saw that it was almost five o’clock.
The waitress returned to their table for the third time. “Are you ready to order yet, or do you still need more time?” She pursed her lips, and then chewed her gum furiously.
If he hadn’t known her from all the times he and his friends had eaten there, he would have thought she was getting irritated.
Turning to Ellie, he asked, “Would you like to get something to eat? I mean, if we’re going to be moving on and everything, we might as well do it on a full stomach!”
She laughed lightly, and then grew serious. “Well, actually, I think maybe I should be going.”
His heart sank.
She picked up the menu laying in front of her and studied the pictures. “But the food does look pretty good.” Flipping her auburn hair to one side, she tilted her head and looked up at him. “What would you recommend?”
Nearly an hour and a half later, with the ice half-melted in their glasses, and only a few traces of tenderloins and onion rings remaining on their white ceramic plates, he and Ellie still occupied the red booth farthest from the front door. The place was nearly full now, and the sounds of mealtime conversations and 50’s music filled the air. They had talked about work, and school, and what their plans were after graduation.
Caleb learned that Ellie was very artistic, and liked to spend her time outdoors doing pencil sketches of buildings and landscapes around town. She said she enjoyed the peace and solitude those settings provided, but promised to show her drawings to him some time. Her dream was to major in drawing and painting, providing she could get into college.
When he asked how the application process was going, she told him she’d recently applied for federal aid, and would be applying for a partial academic scholarship to UGA. But if those means of assistance fell through, she might have to sit out a year, work to save up more money, and consider going to a community college instead.
Caleb told her he planned to major in architectural engineering with a minor in computer programming. He confessed to having difficulty maintaining focus in some subjects, but the hands-on approach to those two disciplines seemed to hold his attention.
During a lull in the conversation, he glanced at his cell phone. “Six thirty? Man, the time sure went fast!”
Ellie looked startled. “I really do need to be going this time!” She picked up the backpa
ck beside her on the bench.
Caleb quickly wiped the table with his napkin and stuffed it into his glass. Then he grabbed his jacket and picked up the check left by the waitress.
“I’ve got this,” he said matter-of-factly.
“Thanks! That’s very nice of you.” Ellie smiled.
After paying the tab, Caleb held the door open for her as they exited the diner. “Do you have a way home, or can I give you a lift?” he asked, hoping she would choose the latter.
“Oh, I don’t mind walking,” she replied, rather quickly. “I’m used to it by now.”
As he began to mentally calculate the distance she’d have to walk, she added, “Some other time, maybe.”
Caleb nodded, and then said goodbye before heading toward his car.
“Hey, Caleb?”
He stopped and turned at the sound of Ellie’s voice.
She took a few steps toward him. “You once told me that God cares about me. Well I never believed that before. But now . . . ” she hesitated. “Now you’ve given me a reason to think about it.”
Those words were like heavenly music to his ears. All he could think to say was, “Well I’m glad!”
She closed the distance between them. “I told you I really wanted you to be different, Caleb.” She suddenly reached out and put her hand on his arm, sending a zinger throughout his body. “And after tonight, I can see that you are!”
Then just as suddenly, she turned and hurried away, leaving him standing alone in the middle of the parking lot with the lingering memory of her sparkling brown eyes and her warm, soft touch.
Wednesday dawned bright and beautiful for Caleb. The fact that it was hump day failed to diminish his renewed enthusiasm for life this particular morning. Silencing his alarm, he lay back in bed, and allowed his mind to drift back to the conversation at Edwards. He was still amazed that Ellie had even shown up, and was eager to tell B.J. and Kelli and the rest of his church youth group about the breakthrough that had taken place. God was working, for sure!
He rehashed the lies that Megan Harris had so meticulously crafted to turn Ellie against him. How could someone be so cruel and vengeful? She must have known that her deception would be exposed, and that the intricately woven threads of her lies would eventually come unraveled.
Perhaps a person so miserable and desperate for attention simply wouldn’t care if she were found out. In spite of the pain that Megan had inflicted upon him and Ellie, he felt sorry for her. And for Chris Miller as well. Before he got out of bed, he prayed that they would both come to know the forgiveness and freedom that he’d found in Jesus Christ. He prayed the same for Ellie. Then he thanked God for the results of the previous evening.
So far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
No matter what the future held, it was satisfying to know that he’d done everything he could, and that a very difficult matter had come to such a peaceful resolution. At least between him and Ellie.
Throughout the next few days at school, he kept his distance from Ellie, figuring that might allow her time to recover from the raw emotions of Tuesday night. On Wednesday night, the other kids at youth group were energized when they learned how God had worked in diffusing the tense situation.
“I’ll try again to reach out to her at school,” Kelli promised him. “Maybe I could invite her to sit with us at lunch.”
“That would be great, Kelli, but could you hold off on that for a few days? Let’s give her a little space first.”
“Sure. I can wait until sometime next week, if that’s okay.”
“Perfect!” He put his index finger and thumb together and gave her the “okay” sign.
Caleb was back on the Bearcat sideline Friday night as his team took on the Greenview Giants. The previous week, the team had dropped its second game of the season, losing to Grant County in overtime, and this week the Bearcats suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Giants, denying them a chance for post-season play.
It was agony for him to stand idly by and watch his teammates get manhandled by their opponent. He ached to be out there with them.
It had been three weeks since being injured in the Arlington game. His ankle was fine and his ribs were healing nicely, but the doctor said it would be another week before he could start practicing with the team again. Hopefully, he would be ready to play in time for homecoming against Madison Central in two weeks.
On Monday morning, Caleb stopped Ellie in the hallway before school to see how work had gone that weekend.
“So . . . did you confront Spiderwoman about her intricate little web of lies?”
Ellie laughed and shook her head. “Not yet. I haven’t figured out the best way to deal with her. I don’t want any drama at work. That might jeopardize my job.”
Later Caleb joined his friends at their cafeteria table. Talk about a fight that had broken out behind the bleachers during Friday night’s football game was the main topic. Caleb hadn’t heard about that.
“What happened?” he inquired eagerly. “Who was involved?”
“You’re not going to believe this,” B.J. told him, “but it was between Chris Miller and Kenny Wilson.”
So his antagonists were beginning to self-destruct. While he didn’t wish ill will or revenge on anyone, he couldn’t help but think, what goes around comes around!
He glanced over at the corner table which Ellie usually occupied. She was busy writing something on a stack of papers. He decided to go see what she was doing.
He picked up his tray and zigzagged his way around the intervening tables toward her. “Okay if I join you?” Without waiting for an answer, he set his tray down next to her.
Ellie looked up from her writing and shrugged. “If you want, sure.” She resumed her writing, but added, with a poorly disguised grin, “It’s a free country!”
Caleb took the seat to her left. “Well what do you know? She talks and writes and tells jokes and everything!” He watched her for a moment. “Is that an application you’re filling out?” The temptation to tease her got the better of him. “Don’t tell me you’re applying for a new job already!”
She looked up and laughed. “Not a chance! I love my job . . . it’s the people I can’t stand. I saw that on a T-shirt at an outlet mall once.” She seemed more relaxed than he had ever seen her before.
He leaned over and noticed the red and black University of Georgia logo on the letterhead. “UGA application?”
“Remember that academic scholarship I told you about at Edwards? That’s what this is. I’m hoping to send it off later this week.”
Caleb recalled how much she was counting on this kind of financial aid in order to get into college, and offered his encouragement. “I’d say there’s an awfully good chance you’ll get one. I mean, with grades like yours, it should be a no-brainer . . . pardon the expression!”
Ellie ignored his anemic attempt at humor and frowned at him. “How do you know what my grades are? Mid-term report cards won’t be out for another two weeks.”
Caleb quickly explained how Jaime Starrett had accidentally seen her grade transcripts in the records office on the first day of school.
Ellie shook her head. “It didn’t take long for that to get around, did it?” She shot him a wary look. “So what else does everybody around here know about me?”
“As far as I know, that’s all. Do you think you’ll get a full scholarship?”
“I seriously doubt it. They have only a limited number to offer, and there are hundreds of applications each year, most with better grades than mine. I’d be happy to get even a partial scholarship. Then if I get the federal assistance I’ve applied for, and with the money I hope to have saved by then, I should be able to at least pay for my first year. But that’s a lot of ‘ifs’!”
Caleb risked asking a question that had been on his mind since their first meeting. “I remember you said I was lucky to have parents who could pay for my education. I do consider myself very blessed that way.”
He hesitated. “Listen, Ellie, I don’t mean to pry or anything, but . . . isn’t there anyone who can help with your tuition?”
She was quiet so long that he began to wonder if he’d made the wrong decision by asking. But then she took a deep breath and looked him squarely in the eye. “Caleb, I’ve never been one to open up about myself to other people. I’m a very private person, as I’m sure you know by now.” She flashed an embarrassed little grin. “I’ve gone through a lot of stuff in my life, and I’ve always handled it by keeping to myself as much as possible. For protection, you know?”
Ellie waited for him to respond, but when he remained silent she continued. “But I have to admit, I get so I can’t stand it sometimes. That’s hard to believe, right? I mean, here’s this girl who pushes everyone away, and then wishes she had someone to talk to. Makes me sound kind of crazy, doesn’t it?”
She seemed alone not crazy, and hurting, and afraid inside. A deep compassion for her welled up inside. If only she could see what God was willing to do for her—what He had done for her!
“No, you don’t sound crazy to me. But you might feel better if you were to . . . ” He thought back to their rendezvous at the diner. “ . . . if you wanted to clear the air.”
Ellie quirked an eyebrow. “Clear the air? You mean like you did at Edwards?” She sighed. “I’m sure that wasn’t easy for you, either.”
He saw what appeared to be admiration creep into her eyes. “I really respect you for doing that.”
The bell signaling the end of lunch period interrupted Caleb’s reply. Just when they were beginning to make progress! He didn’t want this conversation to end here. No telling when—or if—he’d have another chance like this. “Time to go.”
Ellie gathered the application papers and slid them back into the manila folder in her backpack.
Caleb stood up and stacked the trays together. “I’ll take care of these. You go ahead.”
“Thanks.” She gave him a sweet smile. “I’ll see you later.”
A Future and a Hope Page 7