Kayla heard the doorbell ring, and before she knew it, she was watching Runaway Bride with Trisha, Janea, and Hailey. They proceeded to watch two other movies and eat a whole pizza before they pretended to go to bed at twelve o’clock.
Gathered in Hailey’s room, the girls all dressed in black pants, black turtlenecks, and black boots. They tried to be patient while they waited for the clock to strike two. Kayla was catching the excitement. She had never toilet papered someone’s house before. She only wished it didn’t have to be a teacher, and not out of revenge. Nevertheless, at two a.m. she snuck out of the house with the other three girls to meet Dave in his green Jeep.
He drove like a crazy person, and Kayla was nervous they would get pulled over and get busted for being out after curfew. When they got to Kyle Roster’s house, Dave slowed to a stop. Both Kyle and Zack were waiting for them. Kyle was dressed in camouflage pants with a black long sleeved shirt and a black bandana. Zack had on his black warm-up pants with his Blazer’s sweatshirt. Both guys got in the car. It was packed with all seven of them. All four girls were in the back, and the three guys were up front.
Kayla’s pulse began to race, as they got closer to Mr. Bradford’s house. Dave parked across the street in a little alleyway, and Hailey and her group made their way to the front yard. Kayla could see pretty well because of the streetlights, and she hoped no one would spot them. Mr. Bradford’s house looked spooky as dark shadows played across the greenish-blue siding from the tall shrubs that lined his yard. The girls began to wind the toilet paper around the trees as Hailey directed the boys to go into the backyard.
Before long, the house and the yard were covered in toilet paper. They must have used fifteen or twenty rolls. Just as Kayla thought they were about to leave, Hailey ran back to the car and brought back a carton of eggs. Kayla looked at her in horror, as she started throwing them at the house. Kyle saw her too, and he tried to stop her. “Hailey, that isn’t cool,” he said, grabbing her arm.
“Fine,” she said as she jerked her arm free. “Wait in the jeep then.”
Kayla watched from the safety of the bushes while Kyle went to the jeep. Hailey kept throwing eggs at the house one after another. Trisha and Janea joined in, and Kayla noticed Zack sneak off to the jeep. She felt a shiver shake her whole body. The night air was cold against her face. She looked up at the sky. It seemed so huge. She suddenly felt insignificant and all alone. This was certainly an adventure, but it somehow didn’t seem as fun as she had hoped it would be.
Suddenly, the porch light came on, and Janea let out a high-pitched scream.
“Someone’s coming,” Hailey whispered. “Let’s get out of here!” All of the girls started running for the car, but before anyone knew what was happening, Mr. Bradford came out of his house with a shotgun! Kayla was almost to the car when she heard Trisha scream. She looked back just in time to see her fall to the ground.
Kayla watched in horror as Mr. Bradford caught Trisha by the back of her jacket while she was trying to get up. She started kicking and squirming until Mr. Bradford’s gun slipped from his hand and he had to let go of her to catch it.
“Get in the Jeep,” Hailey said, freeing Kayla from her trance. Hailey pushed her into the backseat and then climbed in after her. Dave had already started the engine, and he started driving before Janea and Trisha even reached them. They kind of tumbled in on top of Hailey, and Kayla tried to help hold them in while Hailey shut the door.
Kayla’s heart was beating so hard; it felt like it was shaking her whole body.
“Whew!” Dave yelled once everyone was safely in his jeep. “That was close.”
“Are you O.K.?” Kayla asked Trisha, “I thought maybe you had gotten shot.”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Trisha took off her black snow hat and let her purple hair fall down around her face. “That must have looked pretty scary. I just tripped on a tree root that was sticking out of the ground.”
“I hope that old coot didn’t recognize you,” Janea said in a shaky voice.
“I’m sure he didn’t,” Hailey said flippantly. “Everything’s cool. He can’t prove a thing.”
With that, everyone started laughing and talking about his or her adventure, everyone that is except Kayla. She sat huddled in the corner of the back seat…shivering.
Chapter 14
Confession
Kayla tried to fall asleep as she stared at the stars through the skylight in Hailey’s room. She had such an unsettling feeling. She wasn’t sure where she belonged anymore. She wasn’t sure who she was anymore. She pulled her sleeping bag up tight against her chest, trying to take away the chill she still felt.
It wasn’t like her to be disrespectful to teachers, not to mention stooping to vandalism. Once she had even helped her neighborhood clean up some graffiti at their local park in Riverside. Things were all so complicated now. Before, she thought being a Christian just meant believing in God, going to church, and being a good person. The words came back to her she had heard at church on Wednesday night, “even the demons believe in God and shudder.”
Another chill went through her whole body. She glanced around the room. Hailey’s deep breathing assured Kayla she was out. Trisha and Janea were sleeping on the floor with Kayla, and they both seemed to be sound asleep.
Kayla wanted to talk to someone, to sort out everything she was feeling. She remembered how Pastor Ryan had talked to God so easily at dinner. She decided to give it a try, so with some hesitancy, she whispered her first truly heartfelt prayer to God. “Lord, I have believed in You for as long as I can remember, but I have never really given You complete control of my life.” A small tear escaped her eye and trickled down her cheek. “I guess when You took Dad home to be with You, I kind of stopped trusting You like I did when I was little. The truth is, I just didn’t understand.” Kayla remembered back to the day when Dad had died. Her whole world was shaken. In a way, her faith in God was so reliant upon him, that once he was gone, she had nothing left.
“I still miss him,” she continued her prayer, “but I am choosing to trust You with my life. I am so ashamed of what I’ve done tonight. Please forgive me…I need You. I want to give You all of my life, and I want to live like You want me to.”
Kayla felt an immediate peace settle over her. She knew God had heard her, and forgiven her. In a way, she felt like this was a whole new beginning for her. She stared deep into the night sky; suddenly, a new feeling of warmth swept over her. The sky no longer held the scary vastness it did when she was out earlier. The stars seemed like pinholes in the darkness, letting God’s light shine through. Excitement about her newfound faith rushed through her. What a wonderful thing to feel so loved. Soon, new thoughts started filtrating through her mind. She was not used to listening to God’s voice, but somehow she knew He was speaking to her. The thought came to her that the Bible says God is her Father. She was not fatherless. Anything she needed, He would always be right there to listen.
She looked over at Hailey once more. In a way she felt sorry for her. She had never even met her father, and her mom didn’t seem to be there for her either. Mom would never just leave Kayla with someone who didn’t pay any attention to her like Diane had done. The memory of toilet papering Mr. Bradford’s house came flooding back to her. Suddenly Kayla’s conscience pricked her heart, and she knew she needed to make things right with him.
The next morning, as she rode home with Mom and Cole, they drove past Mr. Bradford’s house.
Mom exclaimed, “Oh my goodness, who would do such a thing. Kids these days.” Kayla couldn’t handle it, she blurt out her whole experience last night, even her talk with God. She also told Mom about cheating on the history quiz. Mom was quiet at first, but then she said, “It sounds like you have done a lot of growing up this weekend. I know this might sound strange coming from a parent after a night like you had, but I am proud of you.”
Kayla didn’t know what to say. Somehow, telling Mom was giving her more courage to tell Mr. Bra
dford. “I am going to go over to Mr. Bradford’s house today and help him clean up,” she said.
Cole broke into the conversation, “I think she should get in big trouble,” he said with a goofy grin.
“Cole!” Kayla exclaimed, knowing her little brother was just teasing her.
“Well,” Mom said, “even though I am proud of you for deciding to give your life completely to God, you’re still going to be our dishwasher for the next month.”
Kayla gave a playful moan. In truth, she was really happy with how her family was growing. They may not have Dad anymore, but God was with them, and He was helping each of them through their daily lives. He had helped Cole to make some new friends, He had helped Mom overcome her fear, and He had helped her to see that doing what God says is more important than being popular.
“Oh, I talked to Nana,” Mom said, “and she said she has been praying God would show her what to do about her loneliness. When I asked her if she wanted to move in with us, she said it was God’s answer to her prayers.”
Kayla couldn’t believe her ears, “You mean she is actually going to move in with us? When?”
“Well, I’m not sure exactly when, but I think she wants to move in as soon as possible.”
Kayla felt so good, she almost forgot about the task before her, but when they pulled into the driveway, Mom was quick to remind her.
“How long do you think you will be at Mr. Bradford’s house?” She asked.
Kayla sighed deeply before answering, “As long as it takes to clean up that mess.” She wrinkled up her nose at the thought.
By the time she rode her bike over to Mr. Bradford’s house. He was already outside cleaning up the mess. Kayla approached him cautiously; she still couldn’t get the picture out of her mind of him coming after them with a shotgun. He looked up at her and she once again felt frozen to the spot she was standing on. “Lord, help me,” she silently prayed.
A few moments passed before she finally found her tongue. “I came by to apologize for this mess,” she said barely above a whisper, “and to help you clean it up.”
Mr. Bradford looked at her a little stunned. “You mean to tell me you toilet papered my house, and now you want to clean it up? That doesn’t sound like very good planning on your part.” Kayla couldn’t tell, but it almost looked like a smile was playing at the corner of his lips.
“It wasn’t exactly my plan,” Kayla said trying to keep her gaze steady. “I was with some friends…” Kayla quickly changed her statement, trying not to give Hailey away. “I mean I realized I made a huge mistake, so I decided to come over today and ask for your forgiveness.”
“Well, I must say, I was pretty upset,” Mr. Bradford said furrowing his brow, “but I am impressed at your courage in confessing to me. So, I’ll tell you what. If you help me clean up today, and then come over once a week for a month to help with yard work, I will not bother to get the school or your parents involved. If I find out who the other people are though, I will not be so generous to them.”
“Thank you, Mr. Bradford, but I already told my mom. It looks like I am going to keep pretty busy this month with yard work for you and dishes every night at home.” With that, they both laughed and then got to work. Kayla felt like she was a part of an environmental clean up crew. It wasn’t the most fun way to spend her Saturday afternoon, but she did learn a few interesting facts about her history teacher. She learned he boils his weeds instead of using chemical poisons, (a relief to Kayla who was still not totally over her “poisoning” experience with Pastor Ryan), he had never paddled a student, and the gun he had last night was not loaded.
Chapter 15
Confrontation
It was almost four o’clock before she started to ride her bike home from Mr. Bradford’s house. On her way, she decided to stop by Sara’s house to tell her everything that happened so far this weekend.
Sara came to the door wearing a light green, spaghetti strap dress. It brought out her green eyes, and her long, curly red hair made her look like an angel as the sun shone on it.
“Come in,” Sara said when she saw Kayla. I am just getting ready to go to Main Street Grill with my family. They are having this great concert there tonight. Jimmy is going to play a few songs as well; do you want to come with us?”
“I don’t know,” Kayla said, “after what I have to say, I don’t know if you will still want me to come.” It struck her how nice Sara had been to her all along. Hailey was outright rude to Sara, but she never said anything negative to Kayla about hanging out with her. “First,” Kayla started out as they made their way to Sara’s room, “I want to apologize for not being a very good friend to you.”
Sara turned to stare at Kayla, “What are you talking about? You’re new, and…”
“I know, I know,” Kayla cut her off, “but you have been so nice to me, and I am so embarrassed, but I believed some of the rumors Hailey spread about you. Well, I didn’t believe them at first, but then I saw your dad buying poison at the store, and one thing led to another. Before I knew it, I was in the kitchen with him, trying to protect my lemonade.” Kayla let out a little laugh, and Sara’s eyes got as big as saucers.
“You mean that’s why you went into the kitchen? Did you say anything to my dad?”
“No, I felt really foolish, and decided I would be better off not to taste the lemonade. Then your dad said that sincere prayer and I saw how loving your family was. Then your dad told the story about how he had bought poison for the rats. That’s when I saw how ridiculous the thought of him being a murderer was. I am so sorry, and I just wanted to come by to tell you I am so thankful for that night, and how your family shared its love so freely with me. It’s been a long time since I have been at the table with a complete family.” Kayla blinked hard, trying to control her tears, and then she stood up to leave.
“Where are you going?” Sara asked.
“I thought I would go home and get cleaned up.”
“Why are you covered in dirt anyway?”
“It’s a long story,” Kayla said.
Sara giggled, “That’s what friends are for, listening to the long stories of life, and accepting us for who we are.” She leaned over and gave Kayla a big hug. “I’m glad you are able to see past the rumors about me and my family. Hey, do you want some lemonade?” she asked with a grin.
“You know what, I think I do,” Kayla said, relief flooding her. Sara still wanted to be her friend.
“Great, I’ll be right back.” Sara quickly returned with two tall glasses of lemonade, and some crackers and cheese.
“Why would Hailey make up such a crazy rumor about your dad anyway?” Kayla asked, after she had explained her whole experience with Hailey and then her heart to heart with God after the T.P. incident.
“Well, it goes way back to when Dad and Dianne were in high school. They dated their junior year, you know.”
“No way!”
“Yeah, it’s pretty freaky. Anyway, Dad broke up with her, because she was totally into herself. They used to go to the same church, but Dianne has never gone to church again, and she’s never forgiven him. After high school, she married a rich guy when Dad was in Bible college. That’s where he met Mom. Anyway, just after she had Hailey, she divorced him, taking most of his wealth. Hailey has just caught her mom’s bitterness.
“Wow, so is that the reason Hailey doesn’t like you?”
“I think so, but there are a lot of people who make up rumors about pastors. I have just learned to ignore most of them.” Both girls finished up their snack, and then Kayla called Mom to see if she could go with the Smiths to Main Street Grill. Mom said sure, so Sara took Kayla over to her closet to pick out something to wear.
“Can I borrow this red flutter sleeve dress?”
“Sure,” Sara answered, and then she showed Kayla where the shower was for her to get ready.
By six ‘o clock, both girls were ready, complete with new manicures and pedicures. Kayla had so much fun getting ready w
ith Sara. Sara had a whole drawer full of nail polish. Kayla had chosen to do her nails in a French manicure, and Sara had done hers in a green color that matched her dress.
“It’s time to go, Elizabeth hollered to the girls, and then they all loaded up into the Smith’s big blue van. Kayla sat next to Justin.
“You girls sure look spiffy today,” Justin said, and Kayla could feel her cheeks turn red. She wondered what he saw in Hailey; besides the fact she was beautiful. Or maybe he had never called her in the first place. Hailey was good at making up stories.
Before long, they were all climbing out of the van. Kayla noticed how Pastor Ryan opened the door for Elizabeth. She silently hoped her future husband would be that kind of a gentleman.
They could hear the music playing as they walked toward the door. Justin saw a group of his friends and quickly vanished into the crowd.
UNDERCOVER ANGELS: Kayla's Big Move Page 7